This slice of savory nirvana came my way via Smitten Kitchen a few months back when I first took off on the veggie trek. I know a keeper when I'm only a few bites into something and I've already started in my head the next shopping list with these same ingredients so I can make it all over again.
I didn't care that it involved making a pie crust and I didn't care that I had to blanch, peel, de-seed and juice all those tomatoes. I made the mistake of using plum and campari tomatoes, which didn't leave a whole lot of tomato meat to create the two layers of slices the recipe calls for. Stick with the beefsteak just like the recipe says.
Now to the corn. Can I just say that I have loved corn above all else since I was a wee little girl. My mother used to say I'd be a cheap date because all a guy needed to feed me was cheeseburgers and corn and I'd be happy. That's still kinda true. I will suffer the indigity of knawing my way down a salty, buttery cob. I always have frozen corn in my freezer. My go-to comfort food when I'm not feeling well is to make a pot of white rice, mix in some frozen corn, a blob of butter, salt & pepper. No matter how dazed and feverish I am, just thinking about a hot bowl of rice and corn will lift me outta my sickbed. Yet, I have never cut corn off a fresh cob! In my entire adult life I can't remember even buying fresh corn.
So this was sort of a first for me. Anyhoo, this pie involves layers of slice tomatoes, fresh cut corn, fresh chives and basil topped off with lotsa cheese. Yum! oh yeah and there's this curious addition, just before you add the last (top) layer of cheese you drizzle over the top a mixture of mayonaise and fresh lemon juice. I have no problem with mayo but several people in the SK comments took issue with it. It's only 3 tablespoons but apparently it's ommission makes a huge difference.
I'm not one to follow blindly even when hitching my tail to a star and if there's one thing I've figured out in the few short months I've been an amateur foodie, is fooling around in the Little Kitchen is fun and it's ok to make mistakes and though Smitten Kitchen recipes are pretty much perfection, I'm attempting my own adaption of the Tomato and Corn Pie. I'm working on a Tex Mex version. When I first bit into this pie it reminded me of a tortilla pie that I used to covet from Good & Plenty in NYC. They called it a Tortilla Flat. It was baked in a ceramic pasta serving bowl. My first attempt I added black beans and cilantro replaced the basil, added cayenne & cumin to the mayo-lemon and replace the pastry with corn tortilla. The only problem was getting the tortilla layer on top looking pretty. I'm also still trying to figure out the right baking dish that conforms best with the tortillas.
This is my current work-in-progress and my first attempt at adapting an already perfect recipe. My last attempt tasted great but didn't look so good. It's all about the pretty.
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