I am a long time lover of fried green tomatoes, so when I saw this Emeril Lagasse recipe for Sweet Green Tomato Pie in Organic Gardening this summer I put it in my "try this" pile right away.
Our garden has decided to ignore all standard seasonal distinctions, and we suddenly have a plethora of late October tomatoes. Because it is chilly out, these tomatoes aren't ripening well on the vine. Yesterday I seized the opportunity to finally pull out that recipe.
To make the filling:
3/4 cups packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup plus 1/2 tsp granulated sugar
6 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp finely ground white pepper
4 cups finely chopped green tomatoes (the recipe suggest about 4 firm green tomatoes, but I used 2 1/2 large ones and a variety of cherry tomatoes also)
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 Tbsp unsalted butter cut into pieces
Sweet Pie Crust
8 oz all-purpose flour (about 1 1/2 cups plus 2 Tbsp)
1 Tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
2 Tbsp solid vegetable shortening
3 Tbsp ice water
1. Preheat oven to 425.
2. I used a pre-made frozen crust, but the directions for this crust are the same as for other 2 crust pies I have made. The ingredients are listed above in case you have the inclination to use the exact crust intended for this pie. Place one crust in a 9" pie pan, and cut the other crust into 1" strips.
3. In a large bowl, mix together the brown sugar, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, flour, cinnamon, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle 2 Tbsp of this mixture across the bottom of the prepared pie crust.
4. Add the tomatoes (which I cut in advance and drained before using) and lemon juice to the remaining flour mixture and toss to coat. Spoon this mixture into the pie shell and dot with butter.
5. Use remaining pie crust strips to make decorative lattice on top of your pie. (I marked mine with a T for Tomato, because I'm a dork like that.)
6. With a pastry brush, brush the top of the crust with the cream, and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 tsp sugar. (I skipped this step. 2 tsp heavy cream, 1/2 tsp sugar)
7. Cover edges of pie with foil. Bake 15 minutes; the reduce the temperature to 375. Bake until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly, 35-40 minutes.
8. Remove to wire rack and let cool for at least 1 hour before serving.
Our garden has decided to ignore all standard seasonal distinctions, and we suddenly have a plethora of late October tomatoes. Because it is chilly out, these tomatoes aren't ripening well on the vine. Yesterday I seized the opportunity to finally pull out that recipe.To make the filling:
3/4 cups packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup plus 1/2 tsp granulated sugar
6 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp finely ground white pepper
4 cups finely chopped green tomatoes (the recipe suggest about 4 firm green tomatoes, but I used 2 1/2 large ones and a variety of cherry tomatoes also)
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 Tbsp unsalted butter cut into pieces
Sweet Pie Crust
8 oz all-purpose flour (about 1 1/2 cups plus 2 Tbsp)
1 Tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
2 Tbsp solid vegetable shortening
3 Tbsp ice water
1. Preheat oven to 425.
2. I used a pre-made frozen crust, but the directions for this crust are the same as for other 2 crust pies I have made. The ingredients are listed above in case you have the inclination to use the exact crust intended for this pie. Place one crust in a 9" pie pan, and cut the other crust into 1" strips.
3. In a large bowl, mix together the brown sugar, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, flour, cinnamon, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle 2 Tbsp of this mixture across the bottom of the prepared pie crust.4. Add the tomatoes (which I cut in advance and drained before using) and lemon juice to the remaining flour mixture and toss to coat. Spoon this mixture into the pie shell and dot with butter.
5. Use remaining pie crust strips to make decorative lattice on top of your pie. (I marked mine with a T for Tomato, because I'm a dork like that.)6. With a pastry brush, brush the top of the crust with the cream, and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 tsp sugar. (I skipped this step. 2 tsp heavy cream, 1/2 tsp sugar)
7. Cover edges of pie with foil. Bake 15 minutes; the reduce the temperature to 375. Bake until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly, 35-40 minutes.
8. Remove to wire rack and let cool for at least 1 hour before serving.
Yum! I have to say, I prefer the savory fried green tomatoes to the sweet green tomato pie. But, as pies go I think this one is pretty good, and certainly more interesting than most fruit pies you'll find out there. If I didn't know it was filled with tomatoes, I'm not sure what I'd think was in there.
