Heirloom Tomato Pie Recipe

Ingredients

• 1/2 recipe Perfect Pie Crust
• 3 pounds tomatoes (preferably heirloom but definitely vine-ripened)
• 4 oz speck (Pancetta or other bacon type meat, diced to 1/4" cubes)
• 1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese (grated)
• 4 ounces Chèvre goat cheese (broken into small chunks)
• 2 large sprigs thyme (leaves stripped from stems)
• kosher salt to taste

Instructions

1. 1

   Preheat the oven to 375 °F.

2. 2

   Roll ½ recipe Perfect Pie Crust and line a deep dish pie pan, flute the edges with your fingers or a fork. Using a fork, prick the bottom of the pie shell 10-12 times. Allow the pie shell to rest in the refrigerator while you prepare the tomatoes.

3. 3

   Slice 3 pounds tomatoes into ½" thick slices. Line the tomato slices in single layers on paper towels, place another paper towel on each layer and continue to stack and layer all the slices.

4. 4

   Remove the pie shell from the refrigerator. Line the pie shell with aluminum foil and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Press the beans or pie weights all the way across the pan to ensure the sides of the shell won't slip as it bakes.

5. 5

   Blind bake the pie shell until the dough is baked through and just beginning to brown. Reduce the oven to 350 °F. While the pie shell is baking cook 4 oz speck until crispy and drain on a paper towel.

6. 6

   --- Assemble the pie ---

7. 7

   Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the panko crumbs across the bottom of the pie shell. Place a layer of slightly overlapping tomato slices into the pie shell. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt, about a tablespoon of grated Parmesan, ¼ of the thyme leaves and ¼ of the meat bits over the tomatoes. Sprinkle about ¼ of the goat cheese over the layer of tomatoes.

8. 8

   Continue layering the tomatoes and other ingredients to fill the pie shell. The tomatoes will collapse while the pie bakes so you can overfill the shell a little. Sprinkle the last tablespoon of panko, some more Parmesan and a few leaves of thyme on the top of the pie.

9. 9

   Bake until the top of the pie is browned and the juices in the middle of the pie are bubbling, about 1-1 ¼ hours.

10. 10

    Cool for at least one hour before slicing so the juices can reabsorb.