Stuffed Tomatoes – Pomodori Ripieni

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Cook rice for 10 minutes in 2 quarts of abundantly salted boiling water along with 2 tablespoons olive oil and one bay leaf. When it’s done, drain excess water and discard bay leaf.

Meanwhile prepare tomatoes. Slice tomatoes in half lengthwise, and using a teaspoon or melon baller, scoop contents (seeds, meat and jelly) into a separate bowl. Do not discard the outer shell or the other goodies. Be careful not to cut too closely to the outer wall of the tomato. You want the tomato shell to hold its shape so that it can withstand baking and serve nicely. Sprinkle inside of tomatoes with salt, and place them cut side down on a tray lined with paper towels – to allow them to drain while you prepare filling.

Pour 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add garlic, shallot and peperoncino (dried hot pepper) flakes. Saute gently until translucent, about 4 to 5 minutes. Do not allow the garlic and shallots to brown – do that and they will taste bitter and ruin your dish. Set aside.

Pour rice into mixing bowl, and toss with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add sauteed garlic and shallot mixture, parmigiano, basil, parsley, oregano and 1/3 cup of the reserved tomato scoopings. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Lightly coat baking dish with olive oil. Fill tomatoes with rice mixture, mounding slightly. Place in baking dish. At this point you may scatter any leftover filling on the bottom of your baking dish or cover and refrigerate the extra filling for later use.

Drizzle lightly with 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil. Bake for approximately 20-25 minutes until tomatoes have begun to soften and tops are a bit brown, longer for larger tomatoes. Serve hot or at room temperature.

This will make enough filling for about 20 small Roma type tomatoes or 10 medium tomatoes (about 5 ounces each) or 4 gigantic tomatoes, such as Brandywine, Persimmon or Copia. The large tomatoes are quite impressive here. If you decide to go for the heavyweights, reserve the tops after you slice them off, and replace them for baking, drizzling a bit of olive oil over the tops as well as the filling.

Variation: For a heartier filling with even more flavor, cook rice for 10 minutes in 2 quarts boiling unsalted chicken broth to which 1 bay leaf and 2 tablespoons olive oil have been added. When rice is done, drain, discard bay leaf and broth. Proceed as directed above.