tomatoes Archives - The Midnight Baker

Simple Tomato Salsa

Judith Hannemann — Sat, 22 Oct 2022 23:00:07 +0000

Here’s a simple tomato salsa for folks not into heat.

Simple Tomato Salsa–No Heat

Do you have anyone on your list that either can’t eat anything hot or simply doesn’t like it? Then this simple tomato salsa is for those folks.

Really this is simply a dressed-up tomato salad. It may be basic, but it’s very good. This salsa pairs very well with my royal fish cakes. In fact it was featured in Mary Berry’s original recipe for those fish cakes. Since those fish cakes are full of flavor, the sauce that accompanies them should not overshadow their flavor; it should complement it.

End Of Harvest

This is an excellent recipe if you had a bountiful harvest of home-grown tomatoes. It’s a great way to use some of them up.

But if you don’t have home-grown tomatoes, be sure to choose a supermarket variety that has great taste. I usually choose the ones that come with the vine because they are consistently high quality. Cherry and grape tomatoes work well to as they are very flavorful. Avoid those ones that are cellophane wrapped as they have very little flavor which will spoil this salsa.In a pinch, Roma tomatoes may be used. They have more meat than water.

Other Ingredients

As for the remaining ingredients, this salsa will taste better with top-notch ingredients.

A nice fruity olive oil is perfect. Be sure to use either virgin or extra-virgin oil since those oils have a distinctive flavor that will enhance everything else.

White wine vinegar is recommended. You can either use the generic white wine vinegar or get fancy with champagne vinegar.

The Recipe

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Simple Tomato Salsa

Not to be confused with Mexican-style salsa, this is a very simple side dish that’s good with burgers or fish

Prep Time10

Cook Time0

Course: Salad, Sauce

Cuisine: American

Keyword: mild tomato salsa, no-heat salsa, tomato salad

Servings: 6

Calories: 113kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

6 firm tomatoes deseeded, diced
1 small red onion finely chopped
1 tbs white wine vinegar
4 tbs olive oil
2 tbs chopped fresh parsley

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Mix all ingredients in a small bowl. Season with salt, pepper to taste.

Nutrition

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Tomato Basil Pasta

Judith Hannemann — Tue, 20 Sep 2022 23:00:15 +0000

Tomato basil pasta is a great way to use those end-of-season tomatoes.

Tomato Basil Pasta–What You Do With All Those Tomatoes

If you grow tomatoes in your garden, you know you always end up with some amount at the end of the season. When you’ve canned or frozen most of them, there’s still the last stragglers. Well, this tomato basil pasta is exactly the dish you want to use up what you have. Incidentally, it’s great off-season too.

This recipe also has the benefit of being totally vegan. It’s nice served with a bit of grated Parmesan or Romano but then it’s vegetarian instead of vegan. I love grated cheese with tomatoes and pasta, but I’ll tell you this–you don’t need the cheese.

Totally Vegan

Made as is, this meal is meatless and totally vegan. Don’t let that fool you–you won’t miss the meat here. It’s a good recipe to keep in your arsenal to make when you have vegan or vegetarian friends over for dinner. It’s also great for folks who want to go meatless a day or two each week because the cost of meat is skyrocketing. You don’t have to make this with the last of the home-grown tomatoes. Off season, make it with grape tomatoes you can get at your supermarket.

For the vegetarians in your list, this also works when served with grated cheese. The cheese adds a bit of oomph to the taste but it’s really good without it. I’m a cheese lover but I find it’s great without it.

Pasta

The best pasta shape for this is good old spaghetti. It just makes a nice presentation.

As an aside, if you also have a bumper crop of zucchini, why not make some “zoodles” with that. That way, this will be a very low-carb meal but satisfying nonetheless.

The Recipe

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Tomato Basil Pasta

Use those end-of-season tomatoes

Prep Time10

Cook Time15

Course: Main, Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: pasta with tomatoes, using up end-of-season tomatoes

Servings: 2

Calories: 704kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

8 oz spaghetti style pasta uncooked
3 cups assorted tomatoes
1/4 cup olive oil
1 clove garlic finely minced
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
Pinch of sugar
1/4 cup basil roughly chopped

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain and set aside.
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. add garlic, salt, pepper and sugar; stir well.
Add the tomatoes and cook until the tomatoes rust and release their juices. Cook until the liquid is slightly reduced. Add the pasta and basil. Toss well. Serve immediately.
Serve with Parmesan or Romano cheese if desired. It’s still vegetarian with the cheese but no longer vegan.

Nutrition

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Chunky Tomato Soup

Judith Hannemann — Wed, 01 Dec 2021 00:00:10 +0000

Chunky tomato soup is quite possibly the best tomato soup you’ll ever eat. Quick cooking and easy.

Chunky Tomato Soup Tastes Like You Fussed

One taste of this soup will convince you that a great-tasting soup isn’t a lot of work.

When I first tasted this, it reminded me of pizza so I like to call it “pizza in a bowl,” but that might be misleading. However, if you don’t want to make pizza or go out for it, this might satisfy the craving.

This is also a soup you can make with common pantry items you likely have on hand. That’s a big plus in my book and you’ll definitely want to keep it in mind when you have unexpected guests–and who doesn’t during the holidays?

Easily Made Vegan

The soup is vegetarian–for those who include some dairy so there’s no substitutions necessary.

However, it’s easily converted to a vegan dish. The substitutions are easy; nut or oat milk can replace the cow’s milk. As for the croutons, you can always forego them but I understand the quality of vegan cheeses now is quite good. I’ve also heard that nutritional yeast is widely used by vegans to substitute for Parmesan. Of course, vegetable stock can replace the chicken. So this soup is quite versatile and can be served to practically anyone with some minor changes.

And if that isn’t all, it’s probably pretty light on calories too if you’re watching them.

Soup & Sandwich?

By all means! Especially if you’re serving people with larger appetites. For me now, a bowl of this soup suffices for a dinner. That wasn’t the case years ago though, so with guys and younger folks, a sandwich is probably necessary.

What is traditional with tomato soup–grilled cheese of course. With this soup I’d make a fancy grilled cheese made with mozzarella. Now it’d be more like pizza!

The Recipe

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Chunky Tomato Soup

Tomato soup is a perennial favorite

Prep Time10

Cook Time30

Course: Main, Main Course, Soup

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chunky tomato soup, quick tomato soup, tomato soup from canned tomatoes

Servings: 4

Calories: 419kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

2 tbs vegetable oil
1 medium onion chopped
2 garlic cloves minced
2 tbs flour
1/2 cup milk
28 oz petite diced tomatoes 1 large can, don't drain
28 oz crushed tomatoes 1 large can, don't drain
1 tso dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
14 oz chicken stock or vegetable stock

Parmesan Croutons

2 cups white bread cubes
4 tbs olive oil
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; cook until soft. Add flour; cook and stir until moist. Gradually add milk, cooking and stirring about 2 minutes or until smooth and bubbly
Stir in crushed and petite diced tomatoes, basil, oregano and stock. Cover and cook on medium heat for 15 minutes. Stir frequently and do not allow mixture to boil.
To make croutons, toss bread cubes with olive oil and grated cheese. Spread onto baking sheet and place into a preheated oven at 350F/180C. Bake until croutons are golden brown, about 10 minutes. Top soup with crouton.

Nutrition

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Feta Tomato Pasta with Shrimp

Judith Hannemann — Sun, 07 Feb 2021 00:00:07 +0000

This is the feta and tomato pasta that’s the sensation of TikTok since it lends itself to many additions.

Feta And Tomato

If you thought that feta and tomato was just for salads, you’re going to have a change of heart.

The part I found intriguing about this recipe was that it used feta–baked no less. The way I heard about this was from a cooking group I belong to on Facebook. Apparently this was something that was viral on TikTok. Lots of people made this and made it with many substitutions. Since most of the people raved about this, I decided I was going to try it as well.

Feta And Variables

The original rendition of this casserole uses feta cheese. Frankly, I was surprised by that due to the amount used and it’s baked no less. Feta isn’t a cheese I would think of baking because of it’s texture. Softer cheeses are generally baked so I found this a bit weird to say the least.

However, my group of foodies said that it changes character somewhat when it’s baked and becomes less crumbly. Others suggested substitutions that worked equally as well. Two of the top recommendations were goat cheese and cream cheese. It was pointed out that that the Spanish make a tapas dish similar (just the tomatoes, herbs and goat cheese) to this. I’d like to try that too.

Don’t be put off by the amount of oil. It’s necessary for the proper texture. This isn’t really a recipe for the calorie conscious anyway.

Pasta

The pasta can be any shape you have although I understand that initially, the recipe was done with plain old spaghetti.

Whatever shape you use, make sure to reserve about a cup of the pasta water. You probably won’t use all that, but it is a great addition to the sauce; it makes it a bit creamier. However, if the texture and consistency are good for you, you won’t have to use the pasta water at all’ reserve it just in case.

The shrimp wasn’t in the original. That was just the tomatoes, feta and pasta basically. This recipe does, however, lend itself to many additions. I thought shrimp would be great but chicken would work well too.

The Recipe

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Feta Tomato Pasta

This casserole lends itself to many add-ins

Prep Time10

Cook Time55

Course: Main, Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: baked feta and tomatoes, baking feta cheese, tiktok pasta recipe, viral recipe from tiktok

Servings: 4

Calories: 593kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

32 oz cherry or grape tomatoes
8 oz feta cheese
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh basil chopped
2 cloves garlic finely minced
8 oz pasta shape of your choice
1 lb shrimp cleaned and deveined
1 tbs butter
1 tsp oil

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400F/200C.
Place tomatoes in a large baking dish (I used 13x9-inch). Drizzle oil over tomatoes and toss to coat. Place the cheese in the center of the pan. Bake for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook pasta per package directions; reserve about 1 cup of the pasta water. Drain and set aside and keep warm.
Melt butter and the teaspoon of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Pat the shrimp as dry as you can then add to the hot pan. Cook until it turns pink and begins to brown. Set aside and keep warm.
Raise the oven temp to 450F/230C and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes or until cheese is golden brown on top and tomatoes have burst.
Remove the pan from the oven and add the basil and garlic. Stir until sauce is well mixed. At this point, you may want to add a small amount of the reserved pasta water--maybe about 2 tablespoons if the sauce seems a bit thick.
Add the cooked pasta and the shrimp. Toss so the pasta and shrimp is well coated. At this point you may wish to add some more reserved pasta water so the sauce coats everything better

Nutrition

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Taco Stuffed Tomatoes

Judith Hannemann — Sat, 05 Sep 2020 23:00:47 +0000

Here’s a great way to use those end-of-season tomatoes. Fill them like a taco!

Use Those End-of-Season Tomatoes

If you grew tomatoes this summer and wondering what to do with some of them, here’s an idea!

Most of us can or freeze what we won’t use immediately so we can have a bit of summer’s bounty long after the growing season has ended. But what about incorporating some of them for more immediate use?

This is a wonderful way of using those end-of-season tomatoes; at least some of them. Mostly everyone enjoys tacos and this recipe thinks out of the shell. Not only are these delicious, but because they eliminate the shell, they’re low carb too.

Use Large Tomatoes

I used huge beefsteak tomatoes to make these. With such large tomatoes, I got two taco “cups” out of each tomato. However, whatever you have harvested, use the biggest ones you have to make these. With the beefsteak variety, I got two servings per tomato. If yours are smaller–say 3-4 inches in circumference–then one tomato will be adequate as a single serving.

And don’t discard the part of the tomatoes you hollowed out to make these. Save it or freeze it for future uses in soups, stews and sauces.

Taco Seasonings

I always use my own homemade taco seasoning. Reason being is I’m not overly fond of the commercial varieties where cumin is the dominant flavor. Sorry to say I’m not fond of the flavor of cumin especially when it dominates in anything. It has to be present to be authentic, and going lighter with it is my own personal taste. If you do use my recipe and you want it to taste closer to the kind you buy in the store, then double the amount of cumin stated in mine.

However, it’s perfectly OK to use a packet of the commercial variety. It’s cheap and convenient.

The Recipe

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Taco Stuffed Tomatoes

Here’s an idea for your bumper crop of tomatoes

Prep Time15

Cook Time10

Course: Dinner, Main, Main Course

Cuisine: Low Carb/American, Mexican

Keyword: low carb tacos, stuffed tomatoes recipe, using end-of-season tomatoes

Servings: 8

Calories: 206kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs lean ground beef
1 recipe taco seasoning or 1 envelope store bought
2 tbs chopped onion
15 oz diced tomatoes with green chilis i.e. Rotel
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese divided
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
4 very large tomatoes
1 tbs olive oil

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Cut tomatoes in half and remove seeds, juice and spines. Place the tomatoes cut side down on paper towels so they drain.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the oil and the onion and fry until onion is fragrant but not fully cooked. Add ground beef and brown well. Stir in taco seasoning and diced tomatoes. Drain fat if necessary. Remove from heat.
Stir in 1/2 cup of the cheese and the cilantro, stirring until cheese has melted.
Divide ground beef mixture evenly between the prepared tomatoes. Top with remaining cheese.

Notes

Ground turkey may be substituted for the ground beef.

These were made with extra large beefsteak tomatoes. If you have regular large tomatoes, you will require more than 4, depending on size.

Nutrition

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Family-Style Meatballs

Judith Hannemann — Wed, 30 Oct 2019 00:00:23 +0000

Easy-to-make meatballs with no bread or fillers is a meal the whole family will love with a tip for great tasting sauce.

Meatballs With No Bread: A Great Comfort Meal

As the weather begins to turn in on us here in the northern hemisphere, we think comfort food.

While there are varying types of comfort dinners, I imagine you’ll always find meatballs with pasta in the top 10.

There’s also many recipes around for meatballs. This recipe is for meatballs with no bread. This one comes from Britain of all places. Specifically Mary Berry. What I liked best about this recipe was the curious omission of any bread or breadcrumbs. When I find a recipe that does things counter to the way I already do them, I must try it and see if it’s any good. I can say that I wouldn’t be posting my take on a recipe if it didn’t so I urge you to try it too.

Since they don’t contain any bread per se, this probably could work into a low-carb or keto eating plan. Again, I’m not a nutritionist so I can’t pass any authoritative judgement. However, if you follow any of those plans, and want a recipe for meatballs with no bread, give it a look (and possibly a try) and see if it can fit your diet.

What Is Passata?

Many recipes that originate in Europe for tomato sauce call for passata.

All passata is is unprocessed strained tomatoes. They’re very thick with a texture similar to the tomato puree sold in the USA. Tomato puree is a very good substitute however, you can find passata here in the USA but it’s just called “strained tomatoes.”

Strained tomatoes come in a paper box similar to juice boxes. If your store carries them, they’ll be right by the canned tomatoes. Be careful though; the brand I buy also does chopped tomatoes and other varieties that are flavored. Be sure to read the label so you make sure you’ve got the proper variety.

Wait…Water???

At first I was very dubious about the trick ingredient in this recipe: water.

This goes against what you think when it comes to concentrating flavor. Who’d ever believe that “watering down” a sauce can make the flavor more intense.

I decided to try it because Mary Berry did say it worked. With all her experience, I trusted what she said, but I had to see for myself because I’m such a doubting Thomas. Well, it worked and it’s something I plan to continue especially with tomato sauces. I imagine the reason it works is primarily due to the fact that you reduce the sauce somewhat; however, not entirely. Bottom line is I can’t answer the why. It just works!

The Recipe

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Family Style Meatballs

Quick meatball dinner the entire family will love

Prep Time10

Cook Time25

Refrigeration Time30

Course: Dinner, Main, Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: ground beef recipes, low-carb meatballs, low-carb recipes, meatballs with no bread, passata

Servings: 6

Calories: 219.64kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

1 small onion finely chopped
2 garlic cloves put through a press or finely minced
2 tbs Parmesan or Romano cheese
1 tbs fresh thyme finely chopped or 1 1/2 tsp dried
1/2 tsp paprika
1 egg
1 lb lean ground beef
1 tsp salt
1/3 tsp pepper
2 tbs oil

Sauce:

1 large onion coarsely chopped
4 garlic cloves crushed
20 oz tomato puree or passata—see NOTES
1-2 dashes hot pepper sauce optional
2-3 tbs fresh basil chopped
10 oz water
salt & pepper to taste

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

For meatballs: mix all ingredients except the oil. Shape into 24 even-sized balls. Chill for at least 30 minutes.
Heat the oil in a large heavy skillet. Add the meatballs and brown over medium-high heat on all sides. You may have to do this in batches—don’t crowd the pan. Remove browned meatballs and keep warm.
For the sauce: in the same pan you cooked the meatballs add the onion and garlic. Cook over medium heat until they begin to get tender. Then lower the heat and cover the pan allowing the onions to cook completely.
Stir in the tomato puree/passata, water, hot sauce and salt & pepper to taste. Let the sauce gently boil over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes so that the sauce reduces about 25 percent. Add the meatballs to the skillet and half of the fresh basil. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add remaining basil to garnish.
Serve over pasta of your choice

Notes

Lower carb pasta may replace the regular kind if you wish.

Nutrition

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Herbed Cheese Tomato Flatbread

Judith Hannemann — Tue, 23 Jul 2019 23:00:52 +0000

Herbed cheese tomato flatbread is better made in a broiler however it can be made on the BBQ grill too!

Meatless Meal Or Side

I love recipes like this because they’re versatile as well as being easy.

First of all, this is a wonderful side dish or appetizer. However since it’s essentially a pizza, it can double as a meatless main dish.

Whatsmore, what better way can there be to use home-grown tomatoes if you have them or buy them seasonally at the farmer’s market? And the fresh herbs in the cheese mixture add such a great flavor–and do use fresh herbs. This flatbread wouldn’t be as good if you used the dried stuff!

Cooking Method

I found there to be a few problems, to say the least, with the cooking method in the original recipe.

Pizza dough is soft and a bit hard to handle–especially placement on an outdoor grill. My instructions for cooking the dough on the grill still doesn’t make the dough easier to handle, but at least when one side is done, it’s easier to flip. The original recipe leaves the flip side raw for some reason. Additionally, shaping the dough on the baking sheet eliminates the need to transfer it.

I also found that once you add the cheese and tomatoes (outside grill method) the flatbreads just seem to steam. Tomatoes are watery so there should be a method that evaporates some of that moisture. My broiler method does, plus it makes the tomatoes taste better and browns the edges of the dough and the cheese.

Make It Easy On Yourself

One thing I recommend from the original recipe is to use the pizza dough that comes in the tube. It’s pre-rolled so it eliminates that step. The only reason I didn’t use it and made my own is that I forgot to pick it up at the store!!!

All you have to do with the tube stuff is unroll it and cut it in half. I have included a link to homemade dough in the recipe ingredients if you want to go that way.

The Recipe

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Herbed Cheese & Tomato Flatbread

Here’s an Uptown pizza everyone will love

Prep Time10

Cook Time15

Course: Appetizer, Brunch, Dinner, Main, Main/Side, Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: flatbread, pizza recipes, tomato recipes, vegetarian recipe

Servings: 12

Calories: 181kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

1 tube refrigerated pizza dough
1 -OR-recipe homemade pizza dough if you wish to make your own
3 medium tomatoes thinly sliced
2 tbs olive oil

Cheese Spread:

8 oz cream cheese softened
2 cloves garlic finely minced
2 tbs fresh chopped chives
1 tsp fresh chopped thyme
2 tbs chopped fresh parsley
3 tbs grated Romano or Parmesan cheese
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Garnish:

1 tbs finely chopped fresh basil
1 tbs chopped fresh parsley
2 tbs grated Romano or Parmesan cheese

Instructions

Preheat broiler to high. Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray foil with non-stick spray; set aside.
In a small bowl, mix all the cheese spread ingredients; set aside.
Divided pizza dough in half and roll out each into a 12 x 6-inch rectangle and place on prepared sheet. Brush each with half of the oil.
Broil for 3-4 minutes or until the dough is beginning to get brown. Flip dough and broil this side for the same amount of time. Remove and cool slightly on the baking sheet. Leave the broiler on.
Spread half the cheese spread on one dough rectangle and the remaining spread on the other dough rectangle.
Divide sliced tomatoes randomly on each rectangle. Sprinkle with the 2 tbs of grated cheese.
Place the flatbreads under the broiler and broil for about 5 minutes or until tomatoes begin to dry on top and cheese is beginning to brown.
Sprinkle with the basil and 1 tbs chopped parsley.
To prepare bread on the outside grill--grill each side of the bread over high heat about 3-4 minutes each side. Finish the flatbreads as per broiler instructions

Notes

Adapted from Taste of Home

Nutrition

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Cheese and Sun-Dried Tomato Stuffed Chicken

Judith Hannemann — Wed, 09 Jan 2019 00:00:15 +0000

Tender chicken breast stuffed with a rich cheese and sun-dried tomato filling. Easy to make too!

Super Stuffed Chicken

Here’s a stuffed chicken breast that’s chock full of great ingredients!

I absolutely love sun-dried tomatoes. They are much like candy to me. Not long ago, a local store had them buy one get one and I took advantage!

There’s lots of cheese too so cheese lovers will love these stuffed breasts. There’s also sauteed spinach and garlic. How garlicky you like it depends on how much you use. As a friend was going to eat this for their dinner, I went light with one clove. However, if I were making this just for me, I’d use two or even three cloves. So use the garlic in accordance with your family’s tastes.

Get Adventurous

If you want to up the ante on flavor, you can! Cream cheese is the base of this filling so it really can’t be replaced with anything else. Reason for that is that cream cheese will soften and become extremely creamy, but it won’t melt or spread much so the filling stays put inside the chicken.

However, the mozzarella can be replace with another shredded cheese you like. My first recommendation would be asiago because of its bold flavor. Crumbled gorgonzola or bleu cheese would be interesting too.

If you’re feeding younger kiddos, they may not appreciate strongly flavored cheeses, so you can use a medium cheddar, jack cheese or swiss. Or you can stick to the original mozzarella which everyone seems to like.

Now For The Veggies

I stuck to fresh baby spinach because I had some in the fridge that I wanted to use up. But this would be an excellent place to use kale if you are into it. I would say to use baby kale or young kale–whatever they call it. The “mature” on is a bit on the rubbery side an may not wilt well like the less-mature one or the spinach.

The sun-dried tomatoes I used are not packed in any oil. They’re like simple dried fruit. I haven’t tried this with the oil-packed tomatoes, but I can’t see it would alter it in any way so if you have those on hand, use them up!

Watch The Video

The Recipe

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Cheese and Sun-Dried Tomato Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Tender chicken breast stuffed with a rich cheese and sun-dried tomato filling. This stuffed chicken breast recipe is easy to make too!

Prep Time20

Cook Time35

Total Time55

Course: Main

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chicken, chicken breast recipe, stuffed chicken

Servings: 4

Calories: 672kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts butterflied
1 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1/2 cup cream
3 tbs olive oil divided
5 oz fresh baby spinach

Filling:

6 oz cream cheese softened
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes cut in thin strips
1 clove garlic finely minced
1/4 tsp basil
pinch oregano
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray or line with parchment paper.
Heat 1 tbs of the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the spinach and stir until it’s just wilted. Remove to a plate and set aside.
Mix all filling ingredients in a small bowl. Open the chicken breasts so they lay flat. Place equal amounts of the filling and wilted spinach on one side of the open breast then fold over and secure with a toothpick.
Dip each stuffed breast in the cream, letting the excess drip off then coat each breast in the seasoned bread crumbs.
In the same pan you used for the spinach, add the remaining 2 tbs of olive oil and heat over medium heat.
Brown each side of the chicken breasts just so the crumb coating browns. Remove to prepared baking sheet and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the chicken juices run clear and the cheese filling is beginning to brown.

Nutrition

The post Cheese and Sun-Dried Tomato Stuffed Chicken appeared first on The Midnight Baker.

Open-Faced Welsh Rarebit Muffins

Judith Hannemann — Sun, 23 Dec 2018 00:00:55 +0000

These Welsh rarebit muffins make a filling breakfast or a light meatless dinner.

Light And Easy

Here’s a recipe you can use for any meal!

It makes a rather hearty breakfast. It’s also excellent for a brunch and finally, it fills the bill for a light supper.

Another great thing is that it is meatless, so if you are eating less meat, you will find that this is just as filling. The base is portabello mushroom caps and they have been a great substitute for meat for a long time. And if you’re feeding vegetarians? Again, it’s perfect! To make it vegan, you would have to find a vegan cheese that melts, so if you can find one, voila! It’s also vegan!

The Bread Base

I used whole-grain English muffins for this. However, the possibilities are endless.

If you have a nice Artisan bread, use a slice of that. Sourdough works well too. I toasted my English muffins so they’d be a bit crunchy and if you do use English muffins, I’d advise toasting them because it brings out some flavor. But the toasting isn’t necessary with a peasant or Artisan bread. The bread will absorb some of the liquid so use your best judgement as to how to “prepare” it. You don’t want the base to get too soggy.

Prep And Cheese

This can be prepared ahead of time, so it’s one of those meals that’s good if you are pressed for time. Preparing ahead is also a boon if you are planning to make this for a breakfast or brunch. Then it just amounts to an assembly job. However, I’d leave making the Welsh rarebit until you actually plan to “cook” them.

This meal is best made with a nice sharp and strong cheddar since everything else is rather mild in flavor. Traditional Welsh rarebit is made with very sharp cheddar cheese, so it’s traditional. Any melting cheese can be substituted to your taste, but I’d stay away from cheeses that string–like mozzarella–because the rarebit flavorings probably wouldn’t taste so good with it. But mozzarella is absolutely fine if you don’t make the cheese mixture and just use a nice thick hunk of it on top!

The Recipe

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Open-Faced Welsh Rarebit Muffins

These Welsh rarebit muffins make a filling breakfast or a light meatless dinner.

Prep Time10

Cook Time5

Total Time15

Course: Brunch

Cuisine: British

Keyword: muffin recipe, Welsh rarebit

Servings: 4

Calories: 330kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

4 portabello mushroom caps
1/4 cup butter
1 large tomato sliced in 1/4-inch slices
2 whole-grain English muffins toasted

CHEESE MIX:

4 oz shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 eggs
1 tsp dijon mustard
1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Instructions

In a medium bowl, beat the eggs. Whisk in the mustard and Worcestershire sauce. Stir in the cheese and set aside.
Lay the toasted English muffin halves on a baking sheet.
Melt butter over medium heat in a large skillet. Place mushrooms in the pan cap side down. Swirl each mushroom cap so they are nicely coated with the butter. Saute on each side about 1 minute, or until the juice just begins to run out of the mushrooms; remove from pan and place a mushroom cap in each toasted muffin half.
In the same pan, fry the tomato slices on each side, just until they are hot. Place a slice of tomato on each mushroom cap.
Set broiler to high heat.
Divide the cheese mixture equally over each mushroom. Place in the broiler and cook for about 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly and just begins to brown.

Nutrition

*Adapted from Mary Berry

The post Open-Faced Welsh Rarebit Muffins appeared first on The Midnight Baker.

Stuffed Tomatoes

Judith Hannemann — Sat, 08 Sep 2018 23:00:22 +0000

These easy stuffed tomatoes are a great way to use those end-of-season beauties.

Great In Any Season

Tomatoes must be everyone’s favorite veggie–even though it’s actually a fruit by classification.

So many of us grow them therefore, there’s always an excess at the end of the growing season. If you don’t grow them yourself, then I’m sure you notice that farmer’s markets and even the supermarkets are packed with them.

Of course the best choice for this recipe is home-grown ones. Their flavor is second to none, but you can find great-tasting varieties in the stores too. Plus you can find great tomatoes in stores year round so these stuffed beauties don’t only have to be a summer treat.

The Stuffed Tomato

Stuffed tomatoes have been around since the year of the flood so this is hardly my original idea!

Memories of stuffed tomatoes, at least to me, are associated with “ladies lunches” from the 1950s or 1960s. I can see the women’s magazines with pics of tomatoes stuffed with tuna or shrimp salad. Any you know what? They are still yummy despite the age of those recipes.

Years ago, a friend used to make up a lunch for him and another friend after their strenuous tennis game. He said this meal was light yet packed a lot of what was necessary after sustained exercise–mainly to “carb up.” He made these tomatoes for me and they were just delicious. However, he didn’t bake the tomato–everything was raw.

I thought about Ed’s tomatoes just recently and thought I’d like to do my own version. And can you believe it, with less garlic!!! He was a bigger fan of garlic than me, if you could believe it.

To Cook Or Not To Cook

There are a few choices here when it comes to how to serve these stuffed tomatoes.

You could do like Ed and just stuff them and serve them right away. Likewise, you can merely pop them under the broiler to toast the top of the crumbs–which essentially is the same as the first way except the presentation is nicer. Baking or grilling them of course warms them so I find that the best method if you are serving this as a side dish with other hot food. It also makes the tomato a little juicy and to me that adds a lot of flavor.

Try them all ways and see which you like best!

The Recipe

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Stuffed Tomatoes

These stuffed tomatoes can be a side dish or a main course

Prep Time5

Cook Time10

Total Time15

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: tomatoes

Servings: 6

Calories: 470kcal

Author: Judith Hannemann

Ingredients

6 large ripe tomatoes
Stuffing:
4 cups fresh soft bread crumbs
1 medium onion finely chopped
2 cloves garlic finely minced
1/4 cup grated Parmesan -OR- Romano cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
4 oz butter
1 tsp salt or to taste
1/2 tsp pepper or to taste

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. If you are putting them on the BBQ grill, preheat the grill to high heat.
Cut off the tops of the tomatoes at the stem end, then scoop out the seeds and spines. I use a melon baller for this. Place the hollowed-out tomatoes cut side down on a paper towel lined plate.
For the stuffing, place the bread crumbs in a large bowl and melt the butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until the onion is just soft; about 3 minutes.
Add the onion/butter mixture to the bread crumbs then add the parsley, cheese, salt and pepper. Mix well.
Fill each tomato cavity with the stuffing mixture, letting it mound up on the top.
Bake or grill about 5-10 minutes or until the tomato is just beginning to get soft. If you want more browning on the top of the stuffing, pop them under the broiler for a minute or two.

Video

See video in post (if there is one)

Nutrition

The post Stuffed Tomatoes appeared first on The Midnight Baker.