Fried Green Tomatoes with Roasted Balsamic Vegetables

Chances are if you grew up south of the Mason Dixon Line you’ve heard of Fried Green Tomatoes. If your grandma never made you this traditional Southern food, perhaps you’re familiar with the Fried Green Tomatoes movie. No matter your reference point or where you grew up, it’s a dish worth trying. At Morrison, we love healthy recipes, but sometimes food’s power to comfort is just as important.

This fried green tomato recipe contains no cornmeal and goes easy on the salt while still maintaining flavor. For added personality, this chef inspired appetizer can be paired with classic roasted balsamic vegetables. To complete the recipe, add roasted tomatoes with fresh basil for garnish.

Fried Green Tomatoes Recipe

Makes 8 servings

Fried Green Tomatoes

1/4 cup goat cheese

4 springs mint – shredded

1 tablespoon heavy cream

Salt and pepper to taste

2 green tomatoes – cut tomato slices into 1-inch pieces

Breading

1/2 cup bread crumbs

1/2 cup egg wash

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup canola oil

Balsamic Grilled Veggies

1 zucchini – sliced longwise about 1 inch thick – you should get about 3 slices

1 summer squash– sliced longwise about 1 inch thick – you should get about 3 slices

1 eggplant– sliced longwise about 1 inch thick – you should get about 4 slices

1 red pepper – deseed and cut off sides

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup canola oil

1 tablespoon minced garlic

2 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

1 teaspoon sugar

Salt and pepper to taste

Roasted Cherry Tomatoes with Basil

10 cherry tomatoes – cut in 1/2

1 teaspoon diced shallots

1 Tablespoon canola oil

1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 Tablespoon Red wine vinegar

1 Tablespoon thinly shredded fresh basil

Balsamic Glaze

1 cup balsamic vinegar

For plating: 2 cups spring mix

For the Fried Green Tomatoes: Beat the goat cheese, mint and heavy cream in a mixer with salt and pepper. You should be able to spread the cheese.   Spread each tomato slice with 1 Tablespoon of the goat cheese mixture. Only spread the mixture on one side of the tomato.

For the Breading: Place the bread crumbs, egg wash, and flours into separate bowls for a breading station.   Dip each tomato into the flour, then egg wash and finish with bread crumb.  Place breaded tomatoes on baking rack and set aside for about 1 hour.

Frying the Tomatoes: Heat sauté pan over medium high heat and add oil. Add tomatoes and fry on each side until golden brown. Set aside.

For the Balsamic Grilled Vegetables

Preheat grill. Marinate vegetables in the vinegar, oil, garlic, parsley, sugar, salt and pepper. Let marinate for 1 hour.  Grill vegetables until done approximately 5 minutes. Julienne vegetables and set aside.

For the Roasted Cherry Tomatoes with Basil

Preheat oven 350 degrees.  On a baking sheet toss all ingredients together except for basil and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven add basil and set aside

For the Balsamic Glaze

Place the balsamic vinegar into a small sauce pan and reduce by 1/2.

To serve: Place 1/4 cup spring green in middle of plate top with 1/2 cup of grilled vegetables. Top with 1 fried green tomato top green tomato and 3 cherry tomato halves. Garnish with 1 tablespoon balsamic glaze and serve.