Trying to be a gardener
These last few years, we’ve really enjoyed planting a small garden in our back yard. We don’t have a whole lot of space back there so our little garden patch is limited in size. But we like to plant a little something every year. I think it helps Alex to appreciate growing his own food but it is so enjoyable to pop out back during the summer and grab a tomato off the vine or some fresh dill to make refrigerator pickles. There is a lot of satisfaction and pride from being a small-time gardener. And if you pick some easy to grow food, like tomatoes, you’ll be surprised at how much you enjoy the process. I’m not really a great gardener to be honest. In fact, I have managed to destroy quite a number of plants over the years. Apparently I should stay away from growing watermelons. But tomatoes I can handle.
BLT’s are my favorite
And there is nothing yummier than a BLT sandwich made with some fresh tamaters fresh off the vine. The flavors going on in this pie are crazy good. Fresh tomatoes, with crisp bacon and the flavor of the fresh basil just takes it to another level. Then you add all that melty cheese on top – holy moly!
Ingredients:
2-3 tomatoes, sliced
1 (9-inch) frozen pie crust, baked (or make your own)
1/2 cup green onions, chopped
1/4 cup basil, chopped
1/2 cup bacon, crisply cooked and crumbled
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup shredded cheese (mozzarella, cheddar, queso)
Directions:
I usually just go with a frozen pie crust when making this recipe. A deep dish pie shell works well here so you can layer all those tomato slices in there. If using a frozen pie crust, you’ll need to let it defrost on the counter for about 10 minutes, then prick the crust with a fork (this keeps the crust from getting too puffy while baking.) Then bake it using the instructions on the back of your package (usually 400F degrees for about 10-12 minutes.)
If using my Wham Bam Pie Crust, you’ll prepare as directed, prick the crust with a fork (like pictured below) and then prebake at 400F degrees for about 10-12 minutes.
Allow your crust to cool slightly. Turn oven down to 350F degrees. Start layering tomato slices on the bottom of the pie.
Season with some freshly ground black pepper. Then top with green onions, basil and crumbled bacon.
In a bowl, combine 1 cup mayonnaise with 1 cup of shredded cheese.
Spread the cheese mixture on top of your pie.
Bake at 350F degrees for about 30-35 minutes (until golden brown). If the the edges of your pie crust are becoming too brown while baking, you may want to put some aluminum foil around the edges of the pie, just covering the crust for the duration of baking.
This pie is tasty served warm but is still yummy as it comes to room temperature as well. Just be sure to refrigerate any leftovers.
Enjoy!
Country Tomato and Bacon Pie
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings 6
Calories 540 kcal
Ingredients
- 2-3 tomatoes sliced
- 1 9-inch deep dish frozen pie crust baked to package directions
- 1/2 cup green onions chopped
- 1/4 cup basil chopped
- 1/2 cup cooked and crumbled bacon
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 cup shredded cheese mozzarella or cheddar
Instructions
- If using a frozen pie crust, you'll need to let it defrost on the counter for about 10 minutes, then prick the crust with a fork (this keeps the crust from getting too puffy while baking).
- Then bake it using the instructions on the back of your package (usually 400F degrees for about 10-12 minutes).
- If using my Wham Bam Pie Crust, you'll prepare as directed, prick the crust with a fork, and then prebake at 400F degrees for about 10-12 minutes.
Allow crust to cool slightly.
- Turn oven down to 350F degrees.
- Start layering tomato slices on the bottom of the pie.
- Season with some freshly ground black pepper.
- Then top with green onions, basil and crumbled bacon.
- In a bowl, combine 1 cup mayonnaise with 1 cup of shredded cheese.
- Spread the cheese mixture on top of your pie.
- Bake at 350F degrees for about 30-35 minutes (until golden brown).
- If the the edges of your pie crust are becoming too brown while baking, you may want to put some aluminum foil around the edges of the pie, just covering the crust for the duration of baking.
Recipe Notes
If the the edges of your pie crust are becoming too brown while baking, you may want to put some aluminum foil around the edges of the pie, just covering the crust for the duration of baking. This pie is tasty served warm but is still yummy as it comes to room temperature as well. Just be sure to refrigerate any leftovers.
This pie looks amazing. I'm putting this one on the menu. Seriously, my mouth is watering- yum!
Sounds great. Can't wait for those tomatoes to ripen.
Yeah, soooo, I'll be making this divine creation. I almost licked my screen, by the way.
thanks alot very much realy
Such a different idea, I'd never have thought of it. That being said, this sounds like something my husband would looooove! Definitely going to have to try this one!
Love reading everyone's comments! Thank you so very much!!
Jackie, I am so, so thankful that you are enjoying the recipes on here. It really makes my day to hear that! I really do try to share recipes that will get busy folks back in the kitchen but not feel guilty about using some shortcuts! I appreciate y'all taking time to leave me a comment! 🙂
YES to tomato pie!! I love it. I made it this past summer with tomatoes from the garden and it was so good. I am so glad you know what tomato pie is! So many people don't!
Hi,
After finding your blog by accident, I have to tell you it has become one of my favorite blogs. I love the simplicity of your meals, the down to earth ingredients and budget friendly too plus you have some great recipes. Thank you for sharing it with me and your readers.
Jackie Hale
That looks so very good!! I just nomimated you for a Versatile Bloggers Award. Come on over to see it at http://www.noshingwiththenolands.com Cheers, Tara
This certainly looks like it would satisfy the whole family!
I love tomato pies of all kinds. (And who doesn't love bacon!) I think that basil just might qualify for the "L" in BLT. Lovely pie. BTW, I've never had much luck with growing carrots. The first year, they were gnarly, the second year, I didn't thin them enough. Third year must be the charming year! We'll see
Yum. I just made a bacon and leek pie and this reminded me of it. I love these savory, veggie pies.
Oh this is going into the recipe box for sure. It looks amazing. Too bad I can't taste it through the web.
hi, i dont eat mayonnaise do you think i could use greek yogurt or sour cream instead? this looks so good!
Thank you so much for posting this recipe! Tomatos are one of my favorite things to eat and I like adding them as a side to lots of things. I cannot wait to try this…I can only imagine how yummy it is with all that cheese! And by the way, your little boy is such a cutie patootie!!
I have my fav tomato pie recipe but I think I will add bacon and see how that is. Sounds good! I also chop my tomatoes instead of slicing and let them drain a bit. Makes for an easier to slice, less soggy pie.
it's in the oven right now!!! As I was making it I thought uh huh NEXT time I will!! do the deep dish frozen crust like you did so I can pile more in!! lol I am gonna top it off with more mozzarella right before it's done…I think,I will have to wait and see how cheesy it is when finished….Could NOT wait to make this…thx for ALL of your awesome recipes!!! xox
YUM!
Brandie, this pie is amazing! I made it tonight, and my family loved it! They literally devoured this pie. If you publish a cookbook one day, add this tomato and bacon pie to the book. Thank you so much for sharing. My family says thank you, as well.
Jennie, I'm not sure how I missed your comment when you first posted it. I'm sorry! Thank you for taking the time to come back and let me know how it turned out!
a southern staple around here ,i use white onion chopped up instead of green , another thing if you have really juicy tomatoes the pie will be runny, i always slice and spread out on paper towels to absorb some of the juices, works great with the taco blend cheese also
Great advice about the tomatoes. You are so right, some can be very juicy and you don't want the pie to be runny because of it!
I have made this pie for years and it is a family favorite! The instructions are not complete here, though. You need to dry/dab the tomato slices between paper towels or in a sieve before layering in the baked shell. You can also do 2 layers of tomatoes, bacon, regular diced onions etc. before adding the cheese/mayo layer on the top. Cheddar cheese give the topping a golden look when cooked. I've also added fresh dill to the mixture when I have it.
Thank you so much for this recipe. I've tried quite a few of yours in the past. I tweaked it a little. I used sour cream instead of mayo and didn't add any onions. I don't like either. I also placed the ingredients in in layers because I wanted every bite to have a bit of everything. I really enjoyed it, and I'm eager to see how well it tastes the next day.
Good morning! I have an Inn and thought since I grow tomatoes this would be a nice addition to breakfast. My experience was that the crust was very soggy, the pie slices did not hold together, and there was a ton of grease from the mayo. The flavors were amazing with fresh garden tomatoes and homegrown basil however so I am going to try this again. This time I will do as others suggest and drain my tomatoes between paper towels. The mayo had an overwhelming taste and grease so I think I will significantly reduce it and try adding sour cream as another suggested.I also think I will mix it in to the ingredients with the tomatoes drained and chopped then top with just cheese. I appreciate your blog, have tried a number of recipes with great success and wonderful flavors. Thank you for helping us!