Tomato Pie

Recipe can be found here

1 (9-inch) frozen pie shell, thawed
3 large tomatoes, about 1 1/2 pounds, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
Kosher salt, for sprinkling
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1 cup coarsely grated Gruyere
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Additional kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Line the shell with foil and fill with pie weights, dried beans, or rice. Bake in the lower third of the oven for 20 minutes. Carefully remove the weights and foil. Return to the oven and bake for 10 minutes more or until light golden. Cool in the pan on a wire rack.

Turn up the oven to 400 degrees F.

Sprinkle the tomatoes with salt and drain in a colander for 10 to 15 minutes. Spread the mustard over the bottom of the shell and sprinkle the cheese over it. Arrange the tomatoes over the cheese in 1 overlapping layer. Bake until the pastry is golden brown and the tomatoes are very soft, 35 to 40 minutes.

In a small bowl, stir together the parsley, thyme, garlic, olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste to blend. Sprinkle the pie with this mixture while hot and spread out gently with the back of a spoon. Serve the pie hot or at room temperature.

Last summer, I discovered Paula Deen's recipe for Tomato Pie. I went to the food network in search of that recipe and discovered Sara Moulton's version. Considering this looked like a healthier choice as well as something different, I decided to make this.

Compared to Paula Deen's, this is more expensive (due to the Gruyere cheese, which costs me about $11 for a small block), took longer (than I recall at least), and was not as good. I also felt that Sara's version wasn't very filling.

Not really Sara's fault, but the crust got a lot more brown that I like it to over the course of all the baking.

I did like the vinagrette Sara's recipe has over the pie. It was a nice touch and added a lot of flavor. I might try to make that again for over Paula's pie.

I liked mine ok; I ended up going for thirds since I was so hungry. BAJ, on the other hand, didn't even finish his slice. I suspect that his was a little heavier handed with the mustard than mine might have been...