Here in the gastronomic nodegel there are many stuffed vegetable recipes but I discovered that there are very few stuffed tomato recipes! So I present a wonderful recipe that will satisfy many, including children, as they are fun to eat. They are also a great meat alternative in a main meal for those who are confused how to serve a vegetarian something besides steak. This recipe is also easily transmuted to pacify the vegan or “must have meat” people in your life.
Herby Mushroom Stuffed Tomatoes!
Serves 4 with side servings or two if you are starving.
- 4 beefsteak tomatoes, (the firmer the better, a little firmer than you would eat raw)
- Four medium mushrooms finely chopped
- One small onion finely chopped
- Two heaped teaspoons of grated parmesan cheese
- 60 grams or 2oz of breadcrumbs
- Two tablespoons of olive oil
- One tablespoon of fresh basil
- One tablespoon of fresh parsley
Method
- Chop up your onion, mushrooms and herbs and place in a bowl, alternatively you can throw them in the food processor and blitz them.
- Add the breadcrumbs and cheese, drizzle in the oil and mix thoroughly.
- Now take a sharp knife and slice off the tops of the tomatoes, putting them aside to use as lids later.
- The next bit takes a little care. Using a spoon, carefully scoop out the inner flesh of the tomato leaving a large cavity with enough flesh to hold the shape of the tomato. The firmer the tomato is the easier it is to remove the flesh without splitting the skin. The removed innards are set aside and not used for this recipe.
- Spoon in the filling, packing it well and sprinkle with parmesan and replace the lids.
- Place on a tray and put in the preheated oven at Gas mark 4/180°C/350°F
- Cook for about 15 minutes, be careful to keep an eye on them, overcooking them will cause them to collapse.
- Serve forthwith.
Added extras
- You can use dried herbs but not in quite as large quantities.
- The offical taste tester suggests you could add a little more oil or cheese as the stuffing can be a little dry.
- For the meat lovers, try some diced bacon lightly fried and drained of fat.
- The recipe works very well without the cheese making it a slap up meal for vegans.
- I am not a fan of raw onion so I cook off the onion slightly as it does not cook completely in this recipe. I also add a dash of Worcestershire sauce (vegetarian) to the onions.
- There are a number of recipes you could use the left over tomato flesh for, my personal favourite being eggplant parmigiana.
- You could cook these under a grill or even experiment wrapped in foil on a slow barbeque.