Heirloom Tomato Tart

Summertime means tomatoes, and lots of them. Here is one of my new favorite ways to eat them. This would make an excellent brunch dish.

Ingredients:

1 baked tart or pie shell 
3-4 medium/large heirloom tomatoes
1/2 c pesto
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2 T olive oil
1/2 c Parmesan, grated
1 T chopped green onions for garnish
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Slice tomatoes in 1/4 inch slices, and allow to drain in a colander for 20 minutes, tossing occasionally. Cook onions over medium heat in 1 T of olive oil until soft and golden brown. Spread pesto over baked tart/pie shell, top with cooked onions, and then arrange tomato slices on top. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Drizzle lightly with 1 T olive oil, and salt and paper to taste.

Bake for 15-20 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly. Allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving. Garnish with green onions. Can be served hot or room temperature.

Chocolate Chip Pecan Pie

At my dad's house, we have a few pecan trees, but the past couple of years there hasn't been much of a harvest to speak of. We've got our fingers crossed for this year! An increase in pecans yields an increase in these pies.

Now about the pie- this is probably the most decadent pie I have ever tasted. I cannot begin to accurately express how rich this pie is - you simply must make it yourself. I know that pecan pie is typically a fall dessert, but we've had a bag of pecans in the freezer that I've been eying for weeks now.

Adapted from the Joy of Cooking

Ingredients:

• 9-inch pastry crust, baked, glazed with yolk
  
• 1 cup toasted pecans, chopped
• 1 cup chocolate chips
  
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• 5 tbsp. melted unsalted butter
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 tsp. salt

Position rack into center of oven. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Whisk in a medium sized bowl all ingredients except pecans and chocolate chips until blended. Stir in nuts and chocolate chips. Warm pie crust in oven until hot to the touch, then poor in filling. Bake 35-45 minutes, or until edges are firm, and center is almost set.

Now, I know this sounds ridiculous, but refrigerate the pie until cold and hard, then slice into 8 pieces. If you try to cut it when it is warm, it makes a big mess (a big, tasty mess). Then microwave the individual slices until warm and slightly melted and serve with vanilla ice cream. So, so good.

*If you don't care for chocolate, omit the chocolate chips and increase the pecans to 2 cups for a regular Pecan Pie.
*Check your pie about half way through - if your crust is getting dark, cover it with foil or those nifty pie-dough shields.
*Freezing Directions: Slice into individual servings, wrap in foil, and heat them up in a warm oven when you have that urge. I froze 3 slices. As for the others, 3 were eaten immediately and the last 2 went to a neighbor.

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Lemon Meringue Pie

My mother's favorite pie is Lemon Meringue. She had a medical procedure done this morning that restricted her to bed for the rest of the day. So, of course, I had to make one! The hardest part about this pie is the crust itself. If you are nervous, don't be! Once you learn how to make a pie crust, you'll never go back to the expensive store-bought.

For crust:

• 1 1/4 c. all purpose flour
• 1/2 c. shortening
  
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 tsp. sugar
• 2 tbsp. ice water
  

For filling:

• 3/4 c. sugar
• 1/3 c. cornstarch
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 c. lemon juice (strained)
  
• 1 1/2 c. water
• 2 tsp. lemon zest
• 4 egg yolks
• 3-4 tbsp. butter
  

For meringue:

• 4 egg whites
• 1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
• 1/2 c. sugar
  
• 1/2 tsp vanilla

You will want to make the crust ahead to give the dough ample time to rest and prevent shrinking during baking. Stir flour, salt, and sugar in a medium bowl. Add shortening. Cut the fat into the flour mixture with a fork, 2 knives, or a pastry blender. When the fat is the size of peas, add the water. Mix it all together until it forms a ball. Turn onto a floured surface. Form into a small, fat disk and wrap in plastic. Refridgerate for 1-2 hours or more.

Back to the floured surface. Gently roll the dough into a large circle with a rolling pin. If it is too hard, let the dough sit at room temp. for 10 min. and retry. Roll the dough loosely around your rolling pin, and drape it into the pie plate. Center it. If it breaks, that's okay! Just use some ice water as glue and press it back into place with your fingers. Use a wet fork to prick around the edges. Cover with foil and fill with dry beans or rice to prevent bubbles from forming. In a 400 degree oven, bake for 10 minutes. Remove beans or rice and foil. Bake for 5 minutes more.

Combine sugar, cornstarch, and salt in medium saucepan. Whisk in lemon juice, water, zest, and yolks until monochromatic. Add butter. Over medium heat, bring mixture to simmer stirring constantly with a wooden spoon to avoid scorching. Once the mixture is bubbling, cook for about 1 minute then poor into your pre-baked pie shell. Immediately cover the filling with plastic wrap and begin the meringue.

Beat the egg whites until foamy. Add cornstarch (This ingredient is very important if you want a beautiful, billowy meringue that does not weep!). Continue to beat until soft peaks form. Add sugar gradually while beating. Beat on high speed until stiff peaks form. Beat in vanilla last. Remove the plastic from the filling, and spread the meringue on top. Be careful to spread it all the way to the edges, touching the crust. Now have fun creating little peaks with the back of a spoon. The peaks are my mom's favorite part!

Bake 20 minutes at 325 degrees. Cool at room temperature, then move to the 'fridge for 6-8 hours until the pie is nice and cold. Serve your delicious pie to your family and friends!