Dear Customers,
A few weeks ago, at about 6am I took my cup of coffee out to the patio to watch the neighborhood wake up. I sat there for well over an hour as the misty morning fog slowly dissipated and gradually rose toward the peaks of our foothills.
Conspicuous for their absence were the multitude of bird songs so prevalent in the Spring. With perhaps the lone exception being a murder of crows, raucously announcing their indignation to the world. The most obvious difference between this particular morning and a mere few weeks ago was that daylight didn’t arrive for at least another half hour!
This year’s garden was a comparative disappointment when measured against past years. I got a good crop of cucumbers, hot peppers and potatoes, but most everything else was left lacking – particularly the tomatoes. I had heard from others that tomatoes didn’t do well this year which I can only attribute to the lack of rain from mid-June through August! Below, however, is a recipe for a tomato-basil tart that I got a copy of from Roy Sample many years ago. My cherry and cocktail tomatoes performed well enough to use.
| 1- 9 inch pie crust (both Pillsbury & Best Yet have ‘em) | 1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella | 5 Roma tomatoes (or the equivalent in cherry tomatoes) |
| 1 cup loosely packed basil leaves | 4 cloves garlic | ½ cup mayonnaise |
| ¼ cup grated Parmesan | 1/8 teaspoon white pepper |
Bake the pie crust in a pie pan at 350°F according to package directions, then remove from the oven. Sprinkle the crust with ½ cup of the mozzarella and let cool. Dice the tomatoes and drain them. Arrange the tomatoes over the mozzarella. Combine the chopped basil leaves with crushed garlic and sprinkle over the tomato layer. Combine remaining mozzarella with the mayonnaise, white pepper and Parmesan. Spoon over the basil layer and bake at 375°F for 30-35 more minutes.