Pimento cheese tomato pie is a perfectly simple, Southern dish that is wonderful as a main or a side, for breakfast, lunch, or dinner!
Could I love pimento cheese any more than I already do? That, my friends, is doubtful. I feel like I probably drive you guys completely insane with all of my pimento cheese based recipes, but then again, maybe you love it as much as I do. Do you?
There aren’t many foods that I love more than pimento cheese, but one that I do is this: perfect summer tomatoes. I mean, most of the year the tomato offerings are sad at best, but about three months out of the year you can get tomatoes that absolutely sing and those are my favorite months of the year. There is just nothing better, in my opinion, than a tomato that you need two napkins to eat.
The tomato pie is a ubiquitous summer baked good. How can you go wrong with glorious summer tomatoes and cheese in a pie crust? That’s right, YOU CAN’T. Especially if the cheese is pimento cheese. Oh yes, you read that correctly. I went and put pimento cheese and tomatoes together in a pie crust. Pimento cheese tomato pie. You want to eat this. Yes, you do.
Here’s the thing about this recipe. Honestly, I feel a little guilty publishing it and calling it a “recipe” because it is just so FLIPPING simple. It is literally tomatoes and pimento cheese in a pie crust. But then again, that’s what so wonderful about in-season tomatoes…you don’t have to do much, if anything, to them to have an amazing meal.
One thing: please don’t skip the salting and draining step unless you want a soggy tomato pie (ask me how I know). It’s easy, it just takes a little downtime to let the tomatoes sit there. And it’s well worth it for this masterpiece of simplicity: pimento cheese tomato pie.
Shared on The Weekend Potluck on The Country Cook.
Yield: 1 9-inch tomato pie
45 minPrep Time:
45 minCook Time:
1 hr, 30 Total Time:
Save RecipeIngredients
- 2 large, ripe tomatoes (any color will work)
- salt
- crust for single crust pie
- 1 1/2 cups pimento cheese
- basil leaves (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a large plate with several layers of paper towels.
- Slice the tomatoes into 1/8-inch thick rounds. Salt one side of the tomato slices and spread them on a single layer on top of the paper towels. Salt the other side. Let the tomatoes stand for fifteen minutes then flip them over and allow to stand for an additional fifteen minutes.
- While the tomatoes are draining, par-bake the pie crust. Roll the crust into a 12-inch circle and press into a 9-inch pie plate or deep dish tart pan, crimping the edges if using a pie plate. Line with foil and fill with pie weights or dry beans. Bake for ten minutes.
- After the tomatoes have drained for 30 minutes, gently press a paper towel on top to remove any excess moisture on top. Spread 1/2 cup of pimento cheese in the bottom of the pie crust. Top that with half of the tomato slices, then another half cup of the pimento cheese, the remaining tomatoes, and the remaining pimento cheese.
- Bake the pie for 25-35 minutes, until the crust is golden and the cheese is lightly browned and bubbly. Top with desired amount of torn basil, if desired. Allow to stand for ten minutes before slicing and serving.
Notes
I totally used a refrigerated crust here, and you can too! Don't let the long prep/cook time scare you. Most of that is inactive time. My pie baked in 25 minutes.
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