The Monthly Bake: Heirloom Tomato and Cheddar Pie

I went to the farmers’ market the other day and I actually started tearing up at the striking display of color. Deeply saturated yellows, oranges and reds, with a few earthy purples and neon greens scattered about the mix. It’s heirloom tomato season all right. And I’m diving into the deep end. Wanna come with?

August’s Monthly Bake lets those gorgeous summertime tomatoes do the talking. But, when designing this recipe, I knew I had a feat ahead of me, on two counts. We haven’t done a savory bake. And, maybe most of all, will people really want to turn on their ovens in August?

I know, and yes, respectively. This pie is worth the heat.

Tomato pie is a Southern staple. I grew up eating homespun variations that were for sure good, but I never knew how great tomato pie could be until I tried the chef Ashley Christensen’s version at Poole’s Diner in Raleigh, N.C. Homegrown tomatoes suspended in a cheesy custard, all cradled in a flaky crust — one bite made me proud to call Ashley a hometown hero.

I wanted my version to stay true to tradition while representing me. I decided to use a common base formula — tomatoes, cheese and mayonnaise baked into a standard crust — but because this is a Monthly Bake, we had to add a bit more whimsy and zhuzh everything up a bit.

First: a buttermilk and chive crust that’s good enough to eat on its own. It gets a head start in the oven so it can withstand the heft of the filling. While that bakes, slice and salt the best-looking heirloom tomatoes you can find (I prefer ones that are a touch underripe so they aren’t as watery). The salt seasons the tomato and concentrates the flavor, but it also helps draw out moisture.

You’ll let those tomatoes hang out while you whisk together the filling: a tangy buttermilk-and-mayonnaise-based custard that’s full of chives and basil, with a slight kick from ground cayenne. Pat the tomatoes dry and shingle them in the parbaked crust. Then spoon over the filling, pile on some shredded Cheddar and top with more tomatoes. They’re the star of the show, after all.

Go pick up some stunning tomatoes and a bottle of Duke’s. (OK fine, whatever mayo you prefer, but I say Duke’s.) Fire up the oven and spark joy!

The Monthly Bake

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Heirloom Tomato and Cheddar Pie

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Total time: 5 hours 45 minutes

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 5 ½ hours

Yield: 8 to 12 servings

INGREDIENTS

For the crust:

⅓ cup/79 milliliters cold full-fat buttermilk

1 tablespoon cold water

2 ice cubes

1 ½ cups/192 grams all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling

¼ cup/14 grams chopped fresh chives

1 tablespoon sugar

2 teaspoons kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal) or 1 teaspoon fine sea salt

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

½ cup/113 grams cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes

For the filling:

1 ½ pounds heirloom tomatoes (about 4 medium)

½ teaspoon kosher salt such as Diamond Crystal) or ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt

½ cup/119 milliliters full-fat buttermilk

¼ cup/56 grams mayonnaise

1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

1 pinch ground cayenne (optional)

½ cup/15 grams chopped fresh basil

¼ cup/14 grams chopped fresh chives, plus more for serving

8 ounces/226 grams sharp Cheddar, grated (2 cups)

PREPARATION

• Make the crust: In a glass measuring cup, mix together the buttermilk and water, then add the ice cubes. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, chives, sugar, salt and pepper. Using your hands, rub the cubed butter into the flour mixture until roughly half of the cubes are the size of peas. Flatten the larger pieces of butter into shards with your fingertips, then make a well in the center of the flour mixture.

• Pour the buttermilk mixture into the well (discarding the ice cubes) and use a fork to start mixing everything together. Once the wet ingredients are mostly incorporated but dry pockets of flour still remain, turn everything out onto a clean work surface. If the dough looks really dry and crumbly, sprinkle a bit more water on top, bearing in mind that it will continue to come together as you work it and as it rests in the refrigerator.

• Use a bench scraper or the flat edge of a ruler to pat everything into a compact (6-inch) square. Cut the square into four smaller squares, stack those on top of one another, and then flatten them down into one even mass about 2 inches thick. (This step ensures flaky layers in the dough.) Loosely wrap the dough with plastic wrap, then use a rolling pin to roll the wrapped dough into a more compact disc that’s about 1 inch thick. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.

• Parbake the crust: Rap the dough lightly with a rolling pin if it’s stiff from the refrigerator. Lightly flour the rolling pin and roll the dough on a floured work surface into a 12-inch round. Fit the dough into a 9-inch pie plate (not deep dish), letting the dough slump a bit so it fits into the bottom and sides without stretching. If needed, trim the overhang so it extends just ½ inch past the rim. Fold the overhang under itself to form a thick ridge flush with the rim. Crimp the ridge and use a fork to poke holes on the bottom and up the sides of the crust. Freeze for about 20 minutes, until very firm.

• Meanwhile, heat the oven to 425 degrees.

• When ready to bake, line the firm chilled crust with foil and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Place on a rimmed baking sheet and bake on the middle rack for 20 minutes, then carefully lift out the foil and weights, lower the temperature to 350 degrees and bake for 15 minutes more, until golden brown all over. Let cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.

• Make the filling: Adjust the oven to 375 degrees and line a rimmed baking sheet with a layer of paper towels. Slice the tomatoes ½-inch thick and lay the slices on the paper-towel-lined sheet, then sprinkle evenly with the salt. Let the tomatoes sit to season and draw out moisture while you finish the filling.

• In a medium bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, mayonnaise, egg, egg yolk, mustard, black pepper and cayenne, if using. Fold in the basil and chives.

• When ready to assemble, pat the surface of the tomatoes with paper towels to extract more moisture. This helps yield a filling that isn’t too wet or leaky when cut. Shingle half of the tomato slices in the bottom of the cooled crust, then pour over the filling and sprinkle with the Cheddar. Shingle the rest of the tomato slices on top and press down slightly.

• Put the assembled pie on a rimmed baking sheet and bake on the middle rack for 50 to 60 minutes, rotating halfway through, until the filling is set and the crust is deeply browned. If the crust starts to look too dark, you can carefully tent the pie with foil until it’s fully baked.

• Let the pie cool completely, at least 1 hour, before topping with more chopped chives and slicing. The pie will keep in the refrigerator, wrapped tightly, for up to 4 days.

Thanks for reading (and baking)! See you next week.

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