Saturday, August 15, 2009

Tomatoes Provencal and Julia's Birthday

This has been such a fun day for me. I went to the Farmers Market this morning and ran into an old friend I used to work with. It was fun catching up and we are going to dinner soon. I ran into Sur La Table later and got a couple of things and they were celebrating Julia's birthday and making everyone a cappuccino and serving Le Madeline's and coconut macaroons. Such fun that was.

I came home and actually went through some boxes of holiday things and priced them for the booth. It's amazing how long all this takes but I have 3 boxes to take. One for now, one for fall and two for Christmas. I still have a couple of things to find but most are priced and ready to go.

I decided to visit a couple of blogs after dinner and found this giveaway on one of my favs French Elements. It's a wonderful giveaway so run over and check it out here.


In honor of Julia's birthday, I made the tomato Provencal recipe from her Mastering the Art of French Cooking. I don't think she would mind me sharing it with you.

Tomatoes A La Provencal
6 firm ripe red tomatoes about 3 inches in diameter
Salt and Pepper
1 or 2 cloves mashed garlic
3 T minces shallots or green onion
4 T minced fresh basil and parsley or parsley only
1/8 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp salt
big pinch of pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup bread crumbs from fresh white bread with body
I sometimes add parmesan cheese too but Julia didn't in her original recipe.
A shallow, oiled roasting pan just large enough to hold the tomatoes easily in one layer.

Preheat oven to 400. Remove the stems and cut the tomatoes in half crosswise. Gently press out the juice and seeds. Sprinkle the halves lightly with salt and pepper.

Blend remaining ingredients in a mixing bowl. Correct seasoning. Fill each tomato half with a spoonful or two of the mixture. Sprinkle with a few drops of olive oil. Arrange the tomatoes in the roasting pan, do not crowd them. May be prepared to this point in advance.

Bake 400 10-15 minutes until the tomatoes are tender but hold their shape and bread crumb filling has browned lightly.

Bon Appetit!!

12 comments:

Melissa said...

Happy Birthday to your friend.

My, that looks so delicious.

Have a great week.

Melissa

sewtakeahike said...

I always seem to visit your site when I'm hungry Judy! I really should go get some dinner lol!

La Donna Welter said...

Happy Birthday to your friend!

And, Thank you for sharing the yummy recipe! : )

Shelley said...

This looks divine!!! You have the best recipes!

Cherdecor said...

This looks so delish! Yes, it's me! I am back! I hope to be blogging soon with pictures. It is hard to get good pictures in August!

The Vintage Kitten said...

Ooh that looks like a winner, and another one of your recipes I will be trying. Happy Birthday to your friend X

Dawn Marie said...

ohhh these sound so good to! I will be making these also.

Theresa @ Take A Sentimental Journey said...

h-m-m-m-m, hm-m-m-m-m that looks good. Save me some.

Gypsy Butterfly said...

Hello Judy,
SOUNDS DELICIOUS!!!!!!!! I'll have to make this and It's vegetarian too!
I just went to the farmer's market this past week end and WOW! what deals I found. I am now planning on going there once a week to stock up on all my fruits and veggies! They're fresh and it will also save me a bundle!
Have a great day!
Lydia

JennyMac said...

WOW...these are so perfect. Want them....right now. Great recipe Misses.

Thimbleanna said...

Oooh, yum! That looks delicious. And the Happy Birthday to your friend comment cracked me up. In which case, I should say "I'm so sorry for your loss." ;-)

Nancy said...

Your dinner looks really good. I have never made any form of stuffed tomatoes. I know you can buy them with tuna or chicken salad at lots of places. Hope it was a happy birthday.
Nancy