Recipe: Stuffed Tomatoes with Tuna and Herbed Goat Cheese

Warren bought a bunch of tomatoes when we went grocery shopping…. I did ask him to get Plum tomatoes… well they didn’t have any… so he bought vine ripened tomatoes…. nice thought… but they really don’t go into the recipes I’d planned…. So change of plans time.

I decided to stuff them for lunch…. I had planned on using my herbed goat cheese for something else… but again…. change of plans. I decided to make a list of ingredients I wanted to use… starting with tuna and herbed goat cheese.

I have a number of stuffed tomato recipes… and this one is a slight variation on one… a few simple ingredients… goes together quickly… and looks so very nice… a perfect lunch.

TIPS

I used herbed goat cheese… which can be expensive… you usually see it in long logs… well they also come in 4 oz…. short logs which are considerably cheaper…. also for those of you near a Walmart… check their gourmet cheese section… I found a long log of it at less than half the price at a regular supermarket….

You can also substitute boursin cheese… but I’m not so sure you’re saving that much money anyway… goat cheese has a wonderful flavor…

You can also mix in the scraped out center of the tomato… just chop it up….

I used medium sized vine ripened tomatoes… this recipe should stuff four of them.

Figure two tomatoes per person.



Cut the fresh basil using the chiffonade technique… that’s a method by which you stack the leaves and roll them…







Then cut slices… it comes out ribbon-like.




Don’t eliminate the basil… it really adds to the taste of this dish.

Do you ever do something kinda …well…stupid… so stupid… you’re shocked you did it…. well I did… when experimenting… I put the basil on before going under the broiler…. needless to say it was crisped beyond recognition… put the basil on top after it comes out from under the broiler.

This is so easy… and a really great lunch…








Recipe: Stuffed Tomatoes with Tuna and Herbed Goat Cheese

All you need:


4 medium vine ripened tomatoes
4 oz. package of herbed goat cheese
1 can solid white tuna in water, drained and flaked
2 tablespoons jarred roasted red peppers, chopped
2 tablespoons plain bread crumbs
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, divided
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
4-5 fresh basil leaves, cut chiffonade

All you need to do:

Preheat the oven to broil.


Cut the top off the tomatoes and scoop out the inside.

Chop the insides into small pieces.

Combine all ingredients except reserve 1 tablespoon parmesan cheese and the basil.




Mix well and stuff the tomatoes.

Sprinkle the tomatoes with the reserved tablespoon of parmesan cheese.



Place on a broiler pan and broil for about 5 minutes or until the cheese is a pale tan color. The tomatoes will be just warm… you don’t want them to get mushy…. just heat it enough to make the insides creamy.

Remove from the oven and place on plates….

Sprinkle with cut basil.