roasted tomatoes with breadcrumbs, herbs, & feta

I don't always plan my meals ahead of time. It's days like these where I'm happy that my list-making, OCD-ness doesn't get the best of me. I sort of felt like I was a contestant on "Chopped," but instead of a basket full of random ingredients, I had to make do with what was inside my dad's kitchen. (Please note, this is not an easy task!) I often find myself having to run to the store one way or another for pantry staples while I'm back home. This time, however, I was feeling a little lazy, and was hoping I could have a somewhat-healthy snack without having to change out of my "I heart NY" t-shirt and boxers.

A couple of months ago while my dad and I were at the store, I made him buy dried basil, EVOO, & crumbled feta and told him that he needs to keep these stocked in the house! 'Past me' really does know 'future me' all too well.

Because I was making do with what was already in the house, I used tomatoes on the vine. Ideally, plum/san marzano tomatoes would work a bit better. They are small enough to slice vertically in half so that it's actually like stuffing the tomato after scooping out the flesh, rather than having the topping fall through all of the holes of the sliced tomato. Although to my surprise, it didn't really fall through too much at all after they were baked.

I recommend slicing the tomatoes a tad on the thicker side so that they don't become too thin after roasting. This topping came out better than I thought it would. I just winged it and approximated ratios, but it was so, so good!! My dad rarely has garlic in the kitchen, but I was unbelievably excited when I saw that he had it. Somehow, the topping came together perfectly.

I just scooped a generous amount of topping onto each tomato slice, but feel free to use as much or as little as you'd like.

After roasting, the topping becomes a golden brown color and tastes just as amazing as your kitchen will be smelling. Think scents of roasted garlic, perfumed with herbs and toasty breadcrumbs. So yum!!

This took me no time at all to prepare, and would be really great to serve as a light appetizer for a dinner party! Keep in mind that these do need to be served almost immediately. I tried saving a few in the fridge and sticking them back in the oven later, and they became too mushy. (They still tasted delicious though!)

******

roasted tomatoes with breadcrumbs, herbs, & feta

yield: ~ 3 servings

Ingredients:

• 2 tomatoes on the vine, sliced ~1/2" thick, or 4 plum tomatoes sliced vertically in half
•  1/4 cup Italian breadcrumbs
• 1 tablespoon of freshly minced garlic
• 1/2 tablespoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 cup of reduced fat crumbled feta, (other soft white cheeses will probably work too)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
• generous pinch of black pepper
• pinch of kosher salt

Note: you may have some breadcrumb topping left over.

Steps:

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. Slice the tomatoes, scoop out the flesh using a butter knife, and place on a paper towel or clean dish towel. To make the topping, combine the breadcrumbs, minced garlic, dried basil, dried oregano, feta, salt, pepper, & olive oil in a bowl. Be sure to mix it well.

Place tomato slices on the baking sheet and add the breadcrumb topping. Drizzle with a little more EVOO, and bake in the oven for 18-20 minutes.

Remove from oven and serve!

******

I can't believe tomorrow is already Friday! This week went by so fast. Does anyone have any fun plans? I'll be attending a wine tasting on Saturday night at my friend Justin's apartment. I'm still trying to decide what I'm going to make!

P.S.- If you have never seen Justin's photography work before, you really need to! It is absolutely amazing. You can visit his website here or check out his blog here.