590. Spinach stuffed tomatoes

Enjoying the cold weather

     I am thoroughly enjoying the cold weather in Bangalore. Makes me feel more energetic. While my family is posting pictures of still hot summers in UK, hubby is saying that weather is getting hotter in Mombasa, Bangalore seems to be getting colder. We get the occasional showers and its pretty windy where we are living. Cold weather means cups and cups of hot drinks, mostly green or herbal tea or plain hot water.(can't drink those in Mombasa!) I love sipping on mint tea. The 'sabjiwala' who comes thrice a week to our complex to sell vegetables and fruits has a policy of not giving small bunches of coriander and mint. I have to buy a fat bunch and land up using the mint for tea. What a change from the few stems of coriander, spinach and mint I get back in Mombasa to these fat bunches.

    Our #FoodieMonday#Bloghop team decided on #stuffed vegetables as our 59th theme. I've already blogged stuffed bhindi and brinjals (photos need serious updates!). My daughter is not a huge fan of parwal(pointed gourd) so couldn't use those. Its a much bigger version of the ivy gourd and I love the vegetable. The sabjiwala (vegetable man) brought some nice tomatoes on Thur and so I decided to use them.

    Ok guys, I know tomatoes biologically are not classed as vegetables. They are classified as fruits. However, approval from the group is all I needed to execute the bookmarked recipe. 
I'd wanted to make these stuffed tomatoes to serve with breakfast for a very long time. But you know how bookmarked recipes seem to collect dust if they don't come to your mind. Participating in various month or weekly groups allows me to go through some of these bookmarked or jotted down recipes. 

    Sunday was supposed to be a heavy breakfast day with stuffed tomatoes, toast, spanish omelette, the works. I made the stuffed tomatoes and daughter and son in law to be decided that we were running late so they would skip breakfast! I had my breakfast, stuffed tomatoes and toast... no omelette :( and we rushed off to complete some wedding work. 

    These stuffed tomatoes are so easy to prepare and can be served for breakfast along with eggs, bacon, sausages or even as a side dish during lunch or dinner. Remember how for breakfast, hotels serve grilled tomatoes? I love them. So go on make these yummy stuffed tomatoes and just pretend that they are vegetables and not fruits!!!

SPINACH STUFFED TOMATOES
Makes 4

2 cups of finely chopped spinach
¼ cup chopped onions
3-4 cloves of garlic peeled and chopped finely
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper powder
1 tsp butter
4 ripe but firm tomatoes
4 tbsp grated cheddar cheese

1. Wash and wipe the tomatoes. Slice the top put of with a sharp knife.
2. Make cuts into the septa(the 3 thick parts of the inner tomato).
3. Using a spoon, gently scoop out the seeds and pulp. 
4. Sprinkle a pinch of salt into the empty tomato shells and leave on the side till required.
5. Heat butter gently over low heat in a wide pan.
6. Add chopped onion and garlic and stir fry till the onion becomes soft.
7. Increase the heat. Add chopped spinach and stir fry for 2-3 minutes till cooked.
8. Take the pan off the heat. Add salt and pepper. Mix the spinach mixture well.
9. Switch on the grill(broiler) at medium setting.
10. Stuff the tomato shell with the spinach mixture.
11. Sprinkle each stuffed tomato with grated cheese.
12. Grill or broil for 10 minutes or till the cheese melts.
13. Serve immediately with eggs and toast or with pasta. 

Tips:

• Use the scooped out pulp for gravies or soup.
• Use a really sharp knife to slice off the top of the tomato. I always believe that if you cannot cut a tomato without squishing it, the knife is not sharp.
• Add stuffing of your choice.
• Don't over grill or broil the tomatoes or else they'll become mushy.

You may want to check out the following:

stuffed brinjal

bharela bhinda nu shaak

baked potato(jacket potato)

zucchini boats

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