Tuna-Stuffed Tomatoes

I didn't grow up to be a tea-sandwiches-with-the-crusts-cut-off kind of gal.  In fact, in high school, my standard sassy line to my own mother whenever she (frequently) got on my nerves was a question about whether she really wanted me to be just like Tricia Nixon, sitting primly at a ladies tea eating white bread sandwiches with the crusts cut off. Fast forward a few decades and here I am, happily cutting off the crusts for tea sandwiches for a baby shower for the daughter of one of my close friends. 

The menu for the shower was tea party foods. I volunteered to make tea sandwiches (of course) and small scones, along with lemon mousse. Although there were several types of sandwiches, I felt as though the menu needed a colorful, vegetable-based dish.

The stuffed tomatoes idea came to me as I strolled down the produce aisle and realized that Campari tomatoes are the perfect size for stuffing – big enough to easily hollow out, but not so big that the stuffing would be an overwhelming amount of food. Campari tomatoes are bigger than cherry tomatoes and smaller than regular ones. They are typically sold on a stem, in a hard shell plastic box.  As you can see, they are slightly larger than a large-size egg.

This recipe is gluten and dairy-free, a simple but elegant brunch, lunch, or tea-time dish.  

Tuna-Stuffed Tomatoes

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Baked Lemon Tarragon Chicken

When dinner has to be quick-and-easy, I don’t usually think of baked chicken. But this recipe fits the bill.  You can make it in less than an hour and most of that time the chicken bakes unattended. The dish requires few ingredients and it is delicious cold if there are leftovers. 

If those attributes aren’t enough, baked lemon tarragon chicken is a budget meal too. I made enough for 4 people for about $8, including the price of the seasonings. With rice and a salad, this meal costs less per serving than a Chipotle chicken burrito, a McDonald’s McChicken meal, or a grilled chicken sandwich at Potbelly Sandwich Shop. And it tastes a heck of a lot better too!

As you are making this recipe, remember the chicken basics, especially rules #1-7 and #10.  It’s always better to be safe than sorry when it comes to handling poultry.

Lemon Tarragon Chicken

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Play with Your Food

At holiday time, I eat more than I should, over commit when I offer to bring a dish, and find that meal planning often goes out the window.   My all-too-frequent holiday grocery store runs are not the organized affairs they should be and my brain seems to freeze up almost as frequently as my laptop.

Is there a cure for this state of affairs?  I doubt there is a drug or therapeutic remedy covered by my health plan, and certainly no way to prevent the chaos that is part-and-parcel of my basic personality.  But I do have a way to bring down the stress level and regain a sense of what holiday time should really be about.  I play with food.

Whether you call it a science experiment, recipe development or simply having fun, I potchke (Yiddish for fool around) with food for relaxation.  Hopefully at the end, I have something worth eating, but if not and I’ve had a good time, so be it. 

Today, I found tomatoes, some fresh thyme, pitted Kalamata olives and cream cheese leftover from parties last week.  I gathered my thoughts, tinkered, and result was stuffed tomatoes. This recipe describes the approximate amounts required for a single Campari tomato; you can easily multiply the ingredient proportions for as many tomatoes as you want to make.  Each stuffed tomato half is about 3 bites worth, so they are nice appetizers for a party.

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