Green Tomato Recipe: Savory Green Tomato BLT Cobbler
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Is it even summer without cobbler? Cobbler is hands down my favorite dessert, and I don’t even like dessert that much. There’s something so beautiful about that sweet-acidic tang of fruit with a fluffy carb on top, am I right?!
I’m still drowning in green tomatoes, thanks to my inability to kill my resident garden mouse. As I mentioned in my green tomato salsa recipe, the little jerk is moseying his way through my garden, taking one chomp out of every tomato and finishing none of them. So, my options were: kill the mouse or harvest everything early before it reaches his desired level of ripeness.
And now I have a giant, every-growing bin of green tomatoes.
While yes, you can wait for your green tomatoes to ripen into red tomatoes, I hate food waste with a fiery passion and would rather pace myself than suddenly be inundated with a sea of produce. I also don’t love canning things, to be honest, and when you expand your ideas on what “normal” food means, you take a burden off the planet.
Some food for thought: we’ve suffered a massive loss in agrobiodiversity in recent years, and agrobiodiversity is essential for sustainable food systems and sustainable diets worldwide. Agrobiodiversity, or agricultural biodiversity, refers to "the variety and variability of animals, plants and micro-organisms at the genetic, species and ecosystem levels that sustain the ecosystem structures, functions and processes in and around production systems, and that provide food and non-food agricultural products.”
So while I joke about playing with food and my weird recipes, every foray into an uncommon ingredient, particularly one I’ve grown or urban foraged, is actually a serious step in a more balanced direction. So, if you’re so inclined, give my loquat salsa or mulberry cobbler a try!
When to pick green tomatoes
As I try to stay one step ahead of my garden mouse, I’ve picked A LOT of green tomatoes. Through trial and error, I’ve learned to pick my tomatoes when they’ve approached close to full growth size and after they’ve lost their “peach fuzz.” Look for a hint of white to creep into the dark green hue of your tomatoes, and harvest away!
Savory Green Tomato BLT Cobbler versus Green Tomato Pie
The original concept for this recipe was actually a green tomato pie, but frankly, I suck at pie crust. It’s messy; it sticks to everything; it usually comes out gross. I’m just not good at it. After two failed attempts, I got my brilliant idea to do a savory green tomato cobbler, and let me tell you, it’s much easier and much more delicious.
One of my other favorite comfort foods is a yummy BLT with crispy bacon, good quality bread, and a basil mayo, which inspired this green tomato and bacon-based savory cobbler. It’s warm, fluffy, juicy, and filled with the flavors of summer… and I think we could all use a little pick-me-up this year, right?!
So, let’s get started!
Savory Green Tomato BLT Cobbler Recipe
Ingredients:
2 cups halved small green tomatoes
2 cups halved small red tomatoes
1/4 cup finely chopped basil (I used purple ruffle basil because it’s growing in my garden!)
6 slices of bacon
3/4 a Vidalia onion, thinly sliced
1 1/2 cups baby kale, coarsely chopped
2 cups chopped red and green tomatoes
pinch of black pepper
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons very cold butter, cut into small cubes
3/4 to 1 cup buttermilk
4 tablespoons grated smoked gouda cheese
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. While the oven is preheating, lightly grease a baking pan and arrange your 2 cups of halved green and 2 cups of halved red tomatoes in a single layer, cut side up.
Roast your red and green tomatoes until softened but not fully cooked, about 20-30 minutes, but this will vary based on the size and ripeness of your particular tomatoes, especially the green tomatoes. Remove your pan from heat, but do not turn off your oven, and allow your tomatoes to cool slightly.
While your tomatoes are cooling, cook your bacon over medium heat in a medium cast iron skillet until crispy. Set your bacon aside and pour off nearly all of the bacon grease into a glass or metal container to cool before discarding. Without washing your skillet, return the skillet to your stovetop and add your onion. Let the onion sweat in the bacon grease until starting to soften, then add your chopped tomatoes and sauté until soft and the juices have been released. Add your basil and kale, cook for another 2 minutes.
Pour the sautéed tomatoes into a large mixing bowl. Roughly chop your roasted tomato halves and add to the bowl, including the juices. Crumble three slices of your bacon and mix into the tomato mixture. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
Wash and lightly grease your cast iron skillet, then ladle in your tomato mixture. Increase oven temperature to 375.
Stir together your flour, baking powder, baking soda, a healthy bit of black pepper, and a bit of salt in a medium mixing bowl.
Cut your butter into the flour mixture with knives until you have a coarse meal with no chunks larger than a small pea.
Stir in your buttermilk just until combined; you want enough so that there’s not weird floury patches in the mixing bowl. You probably will not use all of the buttermilk; I think I used about 3/4 cup.
Crumble and add the reserved bacon slices and gouda cheese, saving a bit for the top, if desired.
Pat your dough into rounded disks and layer across your red and green tomato mixture. You may have leftover dough, and feel free to bake this as a biscuit, if so.
Slide your savory green tomato cobbler into the oven and bake until the biscuit topping is fluffy and golden. (A knife should come out of the topping cleanly when finished!)
Serve warm and enjoy with friends!
Don’t miss my Green Tomato Salsa with Avocado recipe, and if you loved the Mediterranean Couscous with Carrot Tops Recipe, you’re in luck! More carrot green goodness is coming up next.