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The must make pie of the summer: Southern Tomato Pie! This tomato pie is packed with juicy tomatoes, fresh sweet corn, and a savory, cheesy mixture all baked up in a buttery, biscuit crust.
We’ve done all the work for you – this is the best tomato pie out there. We tried them all!
The It Pie of the Summer!
If you follow me on Facebook, you’ve been seeing all of the tomato sandwiches I’ve been sharing lately. Tomato season is my favorite season and I’m eating tomato sandwiches (white bread, thick slices of maters, an embarrassing amount of mayo, and lots of s&p!) for lunch just about every day while the tomatoes are ripe and juicy.
(Someone told me yesterday they had a tomato sandwich with our Asian cucumber salad and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about that combo!)
The other thing I’ve been working on? Perfecting the tomato pie.
We don’t want it bland, we don’t want it watery, it needs a bit of texture, the crust should be flavorful and flaky, but even after all that: the tomatoes must be the star of the show.
We’re calling this the perfect tomato pie. The filling is made with fresh sweet corn and garden tomatoes. The creaminess of the mayo and cheese mixture is the perfect balance to the sweet, acidic tomatoes and the fresh herbs and seasonings in there make everything pop. The crust is basically a biscuit dough that bakes up buttery and perfect.
Serve warm, serve cold, eat it straight from the fridge at midnight like a hangry racoon. Either way, it’s the must make pie of the summer.
What is Tomato Pie?
Southern tomato pie is a savory pie made with layers of thick-sliced, farm-fresh tomatoes and a cheesy filling. We sneak in sweet corn cut from the cob to add a touch of sweetness and a bit of texture.
The cheesy mayo filling is packed with fresh herbs and seasonings to bring ig flavor to this tomato pie.
It’s all encased in a biscuit crust. You’ll often find tomato pie with a single crust, but we went the two crust route here for maximum buttery biscuit goodness.
What We Love About TOMATO PIE:
- Fresh: This savory summer pie recipe is a great way to use up fresh garden tomatoes and sweet corn! It honestly tastes like summer in a pie.
- Crust: The homemade pie crust in this recipe is a little biscuity, which is exactly what you need to soak up all those tomato juices.
- Homey: Baking up a pie will never stop making me feel like a southern grandma just looking to feed her family. Such a nostalgic vibe.
Biscuit Crust Ingredients:
Dry Ingredients – The crust for this tomato pie starts with some basic dry ingredients including flour, baking powder, and salt.
Wet Ingredients – You will also need cold butter cut into 1/2″ cubes plus melted butter, and buttermilk.
Ingredients for Southern Tomato Pie:
Tomatoes – I prefer beefsteak tomatoes for this recipe but you can use other varieties. Whatever you do, make sure these are ripe, in-season farm fresh tomatoes from your own garden or a local farm market. Grocery store tomatoes are not it.
Corn – Grab a couple of fresh ears of corn, remove the husks and silks, rinse them well, and cut the corn straight from the cob. This will give you the best, most summery vibes with an amazing texture and flavor. Frozencorn could also be used, but I say go for the fresh stuff.
Mayonnaise – We prefer Kraft Mayo, but Duke’s is what most Southerners are going to grab. Hellman’s will also work just fine. Just please don’t use Miracle Whip.
Cheese – I’m using a combination of shredded cheddar cheese and shredded Monterey jack. Feel free to swap the Monterey jack for Parmesan for a saltier kick.
Herbs & Seasonings – This tomato pie is seasoned with garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Plus I’m adding some chopped basil or parsley and chopped chives to the filling for more savory flavor! Whatever herbs you have will work great here!
Lemon Juice – A bit of freshly squeezed lemon juice is the perfect way to brighten up the colors and make the flavors pop. The citrus will add a bit of tanginess and enhance the tomato flavor.
Citrus Juicer
Freshly squeezed lime and lemon juice is useful in lots of recipes, and this tool makes it easy and mess free.
How to Make Biscuit Pie Crust:
Add the flour, baking powder, and salt to a mixing bowl and whisk together. Cut in cold cubes of butter until it forms into coarse crumbs.
Stir in the buttermilk until just combined, then gather the dough into a ball. Divide the dough in half.
Roll out one ball of dough to around 12 inches. Wrap the second ball of dough in plastic wrap.
Arrange the rolled out crust into the pie plate and then place the plate into the fridge along with the wrapped piece of dough to chill.
How to Make Tomato Pie:
Slice a shallow ‘x’ in the bottom of each tomato and drop them in boiling water for 10 seconds. This will easily allow you to slip the peels off the tomatoes.
Slice the tomatoes and remove most of the seeds with your fingers. Place them on a towel lined baking sheet, salt well, and then pat dry to remove as much moisture as possible.
Stir together the cheese and mayo mixture and then layer it along with the sliced tomatoes and corn kernels in the prepared pie crust.
Roll out the second ball of dough, top your pie, and brush with melted butter. Bake for 30-40 minutes and dig in!
Helpful TipS FOR THE BEST TOMATO PIE!
- Moisture: The most important part of this recipe is making sure that the pie doesn’t end up runny. Remove the seeds from the tomatoes by poking your fingers through the holes. Salt them well, let them sit for 20 minutes on a towel, and then blot them dry. The salt will season the tomatoes while drawing out excess moisture.
- Tomatoes: I can’t stress enough how important it is to use good quality tomatoes here. Winter tomatoes from the grocery store are just not going to give you a great result. This is a definite summer recipe.
- Crust: The homemade crust in this recipe is also very helpful for controlling the moisture and keeping the pie from turning runny. You can use a store bought crust but it will get a bit mushy.
Peeling Tomatoes:
There’s nothing I hate more than trying to peel a tomato with a knife. My mama can do it like a pro, but I butcher the tomato every time.
My best trick for quickly and easily peeling tomatoes is to blanch them!
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
- Add ice and cold water to a large bowl.
- Cut a shallow ‘x’ into the bottom of each tomato.
- Drop the tomatoes into the boiling water and let boil for 10-15 seconds.
- Remove the tomatoes to the ice bath and let sit until cool enough to handle.
- Slip the tomato skins right off the tomato with your hands.
Recipe FAQs:
We haven’t tested this tomato pie with store bought crust, though I imagine it would work somewhat well. Our biscuit crust does soak up liquid nicely and and sturdier than a traditional pie dough and is formulated specifically for this tomato pie.
You can keep any leftovers stored in an airtight container in the fridge for about 3-4 days. You can enjoy this tomato pie cold from the fridge or warm it slightly in the oven or microwave.
We have not tried freezing tomato pie, but I do not think it would hold up well after thawing.
More Savory Pie Recipes!
Tomato Pie
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 6 tablespoon cold unsalted butter cut into 1/2-inch cubes
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 2 tablespoon butter melted
For the filling:
- 1 3/4 pounds beefsteak tomatoes
- 1/4 teaspoon salt to taste
- 2/3 cup mayonnaise
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 cup chopped basil
- 2 tablespoons chopped chives
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper to taste
- 1 1/2 cups fresh corn kernels from 2-3 ears
Instructions
To make the crust:
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in the butter using a pastr cutter until you have coarse crumbs.
- Stir in the buttermilk until you have a shaggy dough. Gather into a ball.
- Divide the dough in half and roll out one half on a well floured surface into a 12 inch round. Transfer to a pie plate and pat dough into place. Place the pie plate and second half of dough, wrapped in plastic wrap, in the refrigerator to chill.
To make the filling:
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cut a shallow "x" into the bottom of each tomato, just through the skin, and place in the boiling water for 10 seconds. Remove the tomatoes to an ice water bath. When the tomatoes are cool enough to handle, peel the skins with your hands. They should slip right off.
- Line a baking sheet with paper towels or a tea towel. Slice the tomatoes in 1/4 inch slices, remove the seeds with your fingers, and arrange them in a single layer on the towel. Sprinkle with sea salt and allow to set for 20 minutes to release excess moisture.
- Blot with a paper towel to dry any excess moisture.
- Mix together the mayonnaise, cheddar cheese, parmesan cheese, garlic and onion powders, basil, chives, lemon juice, and black pepper. Stir until well combined. Taste for seasoning and add more as needed.
To assemble and bake:
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Remove the pie crusts from the refrigerator. Arrange a layer of half the tomato slices over the bottom of the pie crust. Sprinkle with the corn. Drop small spoonfuls of half of the mayo/cheese mixture over the top of the corn as evenly as possibly to cover. Repeat the layers with the remaining ingredients.
- Roll out the other ball of pie dough and top the pie. Pinch the seams closed and trim off any excess. Crimp the edges. Use a sharp knife to cut four slits in the top crust. Brush with the melted butter.
- Bake until the crust is golden and the filling is bubbling, about 35 minutes.
- Cool 10 minutes before serving.
line pc says
It’s wonderful that you are getting ideas
from this paragraph as well as from our discussion made
at this time.
Liz says
Sounds so good. Thank you for the lovely recipe. Have a good week!
Meagan Drew says
I almost posted earlier when I was embarking on hour 3 of messing with this pie that I would only make it again if it arrived out of the oven w/ a set of keys to a new car and a sack of Oreos. (I realize I’m being a little hyperbolic, but I also was taking care of my 20 and 4 month olds). And then, I tasted it! Holy Mother of Kermit this is my.favorite.recipe.of.all.time! I would make it every day while tomatoes and corn are in season. like, everyday. THANK YOU so much for sharing this recipe. it’s a little extra effort than I’m used to, but so amazing!