One Tomato Down, 37 To Go

As I’ve certainly made the ES community well aware of my tomato abundance, I of course, will share my tomato creations.

I’ve always wanted to make fried green tomatoes. I mean, yes – I like tomatoes and yes – I like things fried. And with what, I think, is actually the last of the toms, I decided to go for it. Oh, and to make it a little bit less sinful, I threw the tomatoes over some arugula.

Ensuring I wouldn’t mess up, I semi-followed Keith Famie’s recipe from “Adventures in Cooking.” Divided up by what restaurant he worked in, this book spans the globe – from his super fancy French cooking to his Western-cowboy flare.

This appetizer stems from his time at Les Auteurs, 1988-1993. And although this was a bistro, it pretended to be a kindergarten classroom.

[On Les Auteurs’ Crayon Club] Famie’s bistro may be the only one in the world to lease a vault holding regular patrons’ personal boxes of 64 crayons for use on their paper-topped tables.

Regardless, here’s my adaptation of Fried Green Tomatoes.

Slice 1 green tomato into 4-5 equal slices – and salt (kosher) and pepper (freshly ground) them.

Because I had about 5 inches of a baguette about to go bad, I broke that up and threw it in the blender with some S&P and garlic powder, otherwise – totally use whatever breadcrumbs are hidden in the pantry. Then pour that mixture on to a plate.

Mix together 2 eggs and 1/2 cup milk (and some S&P) in a low, flat-ish bowl.

On another plate, add 3/4 cup flour (tossed with some S&P.)

Before the breading massacre occurs, it’s best to make the sauce. Combine sour cream, horseradish, juice of 1/2 a lemon and extra virgin. Oh, and what’s the lesson of the day kids – everything gets some S&P. Set aside.

Start to heat a pan with some extra virgin.

Now here comes the messy part. Actually, I think the real reason I don’t bread and fry as much as I’d (or, really 80P) would like to is because I totally destroy the kitchen and use every plate we own every time I use this method.

So, take one slice, dip it in the eggs mixture, then the flour, then the eggs again, and then the bread crumbs. Then drop it into the pan. Repeat.

And, okay, fine, this is one trick that I learned from Ms. Ray-Ray. When cooking something like this, place the tomatoes in clock order, starting with 12, so it’s very easy to tell what item has been in the pan longest. I probably would have figured this out at some point, but while I’m playing “follow the leader” for the recipe, I might as well admit to this too.

When it starts to brown on the down side, flip.

Place your greens on the plate, and when ready, top with the fried tomatoes. Then drizzle the h-radish sauce on top, with some extra squirts of lemon juice and a sprinkle of S&P.