A holiday in the Greek islands should always include a plate of huge, sundrenched tomatoes stuffed to overflowing with lots of Mediterranean goodies, and this recipe has it all. The combination of mint and dill will immediately evoke memories of a past visit to Greece.
preparation time 15 minutes
cooking time 40 to 45 minutes
serves 4 8 as a starter, as an accompaniment
Ingredients
8 large tomatoes
5 tablespoons virgin olive oil, plus extra for brushing
175 g (6 oz) shallots, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tablespoon chopped fresh coriander
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
2 tablespoons pine nuts
125 g (4 oz) long grain rice, cooked
50 g (2 oz) mushrooms, finely diced
2 tablespoons tomato purée
1 glass of dry white wine
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 Preheat the oven to 190°C, 375°F, gas mark 5.
2 Slice the tops off the tomatoes, carefully scoop out the flesh and set it aside for the stuffing.
3 Heat the oil in a frying pan, add the shallots and garlic and cook gently for 5 minutes, until softened.
4 Add the tomato flesh, herbs, pine nuts and salt and pepper, then cook gently for 6–8 minutes.
5 Stir the cooked rice, mushrooms, tomato purée and wine into the mixture. Check the seasoning and add more salt and pepper if necessary, then remove from the heat.
6 Fill the tomatoes with the mixture, brush them with a little olive oil and bake for 30 minutes. Serve straight away.
The tomatoes used to make this in Greece tend to be large, distorted in shape, with uneven colouring and lots of ugly blemishes. But what wonderful flavours they have! In England I look for organically grown tomatoes. If they aren’t in season, try the large beef tomatoes and concentrate even harder on developing the flavours of the filling.