Southern Tomato-Cheese Pie

 

Here is an old Southern recipe that has been changed and modified by almost every cook who makes it yet remains essentially the same.  Some of the variations have to do with the crust. Some use a basic pastry crust but I use a biscuit crust because I think it holds up better to the juicy, fresh, ripe tomatoes, without becoming soggy. 

Most recipes I've seen call for 2 cups grated cheese and 1 cup mayonnaise for the topping. I can't deal with that much mayo, so I make a good, homemade pimiento cheese to use for the topping. 

A couple of days ago, I got home from work to see this sack on my porch.

When I looked inside, this is what I found.

 It looks like our next-door-neighbor harvested the remnants of her summer garden.  I made this tomato pie from those beautiful, vine-ripened tomatoes. I'm thinking about those green tomatoes and the peppers. They will be used. 

Southern Tomato-Cheese Pie

1 cup Bisquick

1/3 cup milk

1 jumbo Vildalia onion, thinly sliced

2 lb. garden fresh tomatoes, sliced

Fresh basil leaves, to taste, thinly sliced

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

One recipe homemade pimiento cheese

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Combine the Bisquick and milk to form a soft dough. Knead the dough lightly, then press into a pie dish. Use either pie weights or another pie plate, to keep the dough from rising too much. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Place on a rack to cool. Lower the oven to 350 degrees. 

Make the pimiento cheese and set aside.

Slice the tomatoes and set out on paper towels to drain.  Slice the onion very thinly.  Slice the basil.

In the crust, layer the onions and tomatoes, really high, using salt, pepper, and basil on each layer of tomato.  Spread the pimiento cheese over the tomatoes and onions to form a top crust. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes to an hour. Let cool for 10 minutes before slicing.