It has been a while. But what can I say? I’ve been out and about enjoying the summer weather and the many edible treasures this season offers. We’re in the peak time for blueberries, peaches, melons and numerous veggies (my regulars are romaine, green beans, corn, broccoli, zucchini and carrots). Cherries are on their way out, but I’m just starting to see apples at my weekly market. Check out a harvest calendar to see which produce are available throughout the year.
A few months back, I saw Martha Stewart on the Today show display some vegetable tarts and pies. I loved the look of one in particular and immediately looked up the recipe online. Check it out. It’s a Cherry Tomato, Bocconcini, and Zucchini Pie, and it’s delicious.
A few months back, I saw Martha Stewart on the Today show display some vegetable tarts and pies. I loved the look of one in particular and immediately looked up the recipe online. Check it out. It’s a Cherry Tomato, Bocconcini, and Zucchini Pie, and it’s delicious.
After keeping the recipe bookmarked for many months, I finally had the chance to try it out. Like I said, I loved the look of it before I ever got close to making it because that picture is stunning, and what Ms. Stewart had to offer on the show looked just as good. Well of course mine turned out to look not quite as pretty as the picture, but it sure did taste great.
I went to the market last Saturday to get the bulk of the ingredients – organic zucchini and sugar sweet cherry tomatoes along with fresh mozzarella. That’s all I needed. The other main ingredients are sugar, flour, butter and parmesan.
While the filling of this pie is nothing groundbreaking – a few things set it a part. Sauteeing the zucchini with shallots gave them great color and flavor, and released a lot of the liquid, thus concentrating that flavor even more. The homemade Cheese Crust Ms. Stewart uses as an additional recipe is a fantastic way to clothe these ingredients. It was another reason to use my Kitchen Aid processor, and it came together really well with whole wheat flour as my only adjustment.
By the way, I’m going to go half whole wheat and half all-purpose flour next time as the whole wheat was a bit overpowering. I also suggest rolling out the crust on a baking sheet of some sort, so it can be easily transferred to the pie plate. I did not do this, and the pics show it! All in all, I was happy with the end result.
Visit a farmer’s market this weekend and get some additional, specific ingredients to try a new recipe like this one. Get some of the freshest produce available, prepare it in a new way, and feel good about eating it!
