Joyful Abode

This was a simple dinner I threw together one night out of things we already had. I didn’t follow a recipe, but here’s how things came together.

• 2 bell peppers
• 1 box of “dirty” rice mix
• 2 Cajun sausages, taken out of their casings and browned (like ground beef)
• Chili powder, paprika, garlic, salt (to taste)
• Cheddar cheese
• Frozen hush puppies

Basically, here’s how it went. Cut off the tops of the peppers and de-seed them. Then, stick them in the oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit in a glass baking dish. I put a little bit of water in and around them, and wrapped them with tin foil, so they could sort of steam and soften.

While those are in the oven, cook the rice according to package directions, and throw in the Cajun sausage pieces (You can brown them while the rice is cooking). I think I also had an extra bell pepper, which I cut up and added to the rice, though this really isn’t necessary.

By the time the rice mixture was finished, the peppers should be starting to get soft (but not too soft!). Take them out of the oven, and get rid of any extra water.  Fill them with the rice mixture and top with cheese. Pop them into the oven with some frozen hush puppies (on a cookie sheet on the other oven rack) and in about 10-15 minutes, everything is ready to go!

Mmmm……

If there’s one thing that says “summer” to me, it might just be corn on the cob. When my family visited my grandmother in Michigan every summer, “Doo-Dah” would bring us corn on the cob for the requisite family cookout. My dozens of cousins and second cousins (well, close to dozens) and I sat in the yard, shucking the corn and taking off as much of the silk as we could, happily anticipating the feast ahead.

A few short hours later would find us happily munching the kernels off of the cobs, which we had buttered and sprinkled with salt. Delightful!

My father taught me how to eat the corn neatly so it wouldn’t get stuck in your teeth, by popping the kernels off one row at a time using your bottom teeth, rather than digging in with a CHOMP! It works, and has the added benefit of a typewriter joke. Finish the line of corn, say “Ding!” and start over. Well, that’s what my dad does anyway.

He also taught me the delights of eating leftover corn, still cold from the fridge, with a sprinkle of salt. It’s one of my favorite summertime treats to eat corn this way, so I usually get extras so I can intentionally have leftovers.

Unfortunately, when I moved out on my own, I discovered that I wasn’t actually sure about the right way to cook corn on the cob.  I tried microwaving it, boiling it endlessly, seasoning the water with a variety of things… but nothing was ever quite right.

So after reading about a dozen “recipes” and formulas for corn on the cob, the guy and I settled on this method (which is a conglomeration of a couple different ones), which turned out to be a happy discovery.  THIS is how corn on the cob shoud be!*

• Fill your pot with water.
• Add 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of sugar.
• Drop in your corn.
• Bring everything to a boil, making sure the sugar is dissolved in the water.
• Boil for no longer than 8 minutes.
• Remove from the water and let it cool enough for handling and eating.
• Handle it and eat it.

It was perfect! Well, almost perfect. It was early-season corn and not the best I’ve ever had, but it was delicious and cooked properly! With just a smear of butter and a few shakes of salt, it was delicious with our dinner of tomato pie.

And I had my 2 ears of leftover corn reserved in the fridge for later, when I enjoyed them cold, and sprinkled with salt.

*Unless it’s grilled, which is equally as delicious, and always a special treat. I LOVE grilled corn on the cob. 

The first time I posted this recipe was back in September of ‘07. Two things have happened since then:

1. I figured out that I like this dish even better (if that was possible!) if I peel the tomatoes first, and
2. I have gotten much, much better at food photography.

So, here’s the same recipe, a second time around!

I make my own crust (the recipe is here), but store-bought should work fine too. If you have a pastry crust recipe you like though, feel free to use that!

If you’re using a commercial crust, you may want to pre-bake it for a few minutes at 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

If you’re picky like me, you might want to peel and de-seed your tomatoes before you slice them. If not, slice away. Lay your tomatoes on paper towels or cloth to absorb the excess water. No one wants a soggy pie! When your tomatoes are ready, fill your crust with them. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, basil and onion powder. Like I said in the original post, I am very liberal with the basil and salt.

Then, mix 1/2 cup mayonnaise with 2 cups of your choice of shredded cheese (this time I used mozzarella). Spread this over the tomatoes.

If you’re using homemade crust, you can add the top now, making sure to poke vents into it. If you’re using a commercial crust, don’t worry! It’s just fine without a “lid.”

Protect the edges of your crust with a shield. If you don’t have a pre-made one, aluminum foil will work perfectly.

Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes, then remove the foil.

Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until your crust is goldeny delicious.

If you can wait, it’s good to let the pie sit for 10-15 minutes, so everything can congeal inside. I couldn’t wait this time, so the slices in these pictures are a bit oozy. (Mmm….) If you let it sit, it’ll slice into pieces that are actually triangular, rather than triangular-plus-oozage.

I missed some seeds I guess! But a few don’t bother me. Doesn’t it look delightful? Mmmmmm! Tomato Pie!

Tomatoes are such a lovely fruit. I enjoy them so many ways… but I am insanely picky about them.

I don’t like to eat the ooky seed/slime part, so I always de-seed my tomatoes before slicing them or cooking them. I am also kind of weird about the skin. It’s fine if I’m eating slices of tomatoes on sandwiches or plain with salt, but if the tomatoes are cooked, I can’t stand eating the skin. It’s just a weird texture by itself, I guess.

So I had to figure out how to easily peel tomatoes for when I make my beloved tomato pie. I figured it would be easier to do all at once before cooking it than to pick out the peel pieces before/during each bite I take. haha!

First, you’ll need tomatoes, of course…

And a bowl of ice water…

And a pot of boiling water.

It’s really very simple! All you have to do is put the tomatoes into the pot of water , leave them there for one minute, then fish them out with a slotted spoon.

Submerge the tomato in ice water until it’s completely cool.

Now, barely pierce the skin with a paring knife, making a small slit.

And start peeling. You’ll find that the skin comes away from the tomato quite easily.

And you’ll be able to peel off large pieces…

Until the entire lovely tomato is free!

It’s so quick, it only takes a little while to do a whole bunch of tomatoes. You can put them all in the boiling water, then ice water at the same time. After that, it’s just a simple slit and peel for each!

After this, I de-seeded them and made the best tomato pie I’ve ever made! More on that later. *sneaky grin*