It is
true that, if you allow yourself, you will learn something new every day! In my
last post, I mentioned how my Italian Grandmother would make tomato pie (not pizza) on
Friday nights. Since, I’ve been inundated with emails, some from as far away as
Ireland, asking me for her recipe. Apparently, there are a lot of lactose
intolerant people who can’t eat regular pizza because of the milk-rich
mozzarella cheese that is slathered on top. (Quite frankly, I received a little too much information on
what happens to these people when they consume dairy products.)
Anyway,
you have to remember that I was only seven or eight years old when she was
making the tomato pie and wasn’t taking notes. And with my Grandmother long
gone (as are most of her children, including my own mother), I had to do a
little CSI’ing to help the readers who so very nicely took the time to ask me
about this item that I described as “heaven”. My results surprised me.
My
first thought was to search “tomato pie recipe” and see what was out there; and
let me tell you, they didn’t come close to what I was writing about. Most of
the modern recipes start with using pre-made pie crusts and placing tomato slices
around the bottom. At that point, each recipe took different variations, using everything; bacon, onions, peppers, eggs, mushrooms, and always, always cheese.
They looked great, and I guess because they are in a pie crust and have
tomatoes, they can technically be called a “tomato pie”. But most of them
looked like a quiche, and nothing at all like what I remembered.
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Not Grandmom's! |
Time to
go to plan B and call my 85-year-old aunt, one of my Grandmother’s few
surviving offspring. Now, I love my Aunt Angelina (Lee to family), but talking
to her on the phone is, well, rather difficult since every conversation starts
with “this damn hearing aid isn’t working……who is this?” But, because I wrote
the article that readers were asking about, I decided to take one for the team
and call her. It went something like this:
“Aunt Lee, do you
remember when Grandmom made tomato pie?”
“What….wait a minute, let
me turn down this damn TV….okay, made what?”
“Tomato pie. How did
Grandmom make the tomato pie?”
“Wait…..let me get my
glasses….okay, tomato pie? Why are you asking?”
“I want to make it. I
need the recipe”
“Recipe, what recipe?
You make the dough, a little gravy, a little olive oil….what recipe? Anybody
with half a brain can make it…..wait a minute, this damn hearing aid….”
Mangiare a Nonne!!!! |
Grandmom’s
Tomato Pie:
Roll
dough out to desired thickness (Grandmom’s was thin)
Brush
entire surface of dough with extra virgin olive oil
Sprinkle
gently with a good quality parmesan cheese (much less milk fat than mozzarella)
Spread
favorite tomato sauce thinly over dough - thin being key to making a great tomato pie. (I use my grandmother’s recipe for “gravy”, so if not using
homemade, use a good quality jar sauce).
Top with an additional dusting Parmesan and a sprinkle of garlic salt.
Put in
400 degree oven (on pizza stone, if one is available) and bake about 15 minutes
or until crust is browning and sauce is slightly bubbling.
There
it is! Easy as pie! (sorry). Maybe Aunt Lee was right, anyone with half a brain
can make this, just use the other half to decide which vino goes best with it! And enjoy! Also, thanks for asking. Grandmom would be happy.
Hi JoAnn, I love reading your blog. This Irish girl loves tomato pie, and with half a brain and your recipe, I think I can do it! Thanks, Jean
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Jean! It is easy, as they say, if I can make it, anyone can! Thanks for the support on the blog, too!
ReplyDeleteYUMMY!!!!!!!!!!! thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading! And this would go great with Cosmo's!!
ReplyDeleteThis looks really yummy!
ReplyDeleteThanks Karen. It is really good, and so, so easy to make!
ReplyDelete