Baked Stuffed Tomatoes with Spinach and Cottage Cheese

Name: Baked Stuffed Tomatoes with Spinach and Cottage Cheese
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 60 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil (2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil); 4 pieces Tomato (4 large ripe red tomatoes beefsteak or other large tomato variety); 0 tsp Table Salt (salt for draining tomatoes + 1 tsp salt); ½ piece Yellow Onion (½ medium onion finely diced- I use Vidalia but white or yellow onion works here too); 1 clove Garlic (1 large garlic clove minced); 12 oz Spinach (12 oz frozen spinach thawed, drained, and completely squeezed dry); 1 ¼ cup Cottage Cheese (1¼ cup 2% cottage cheese small curd); ½ cup Parmesan Cheese (½ cup shredded parmesan cheese + block of parmesan or pecorino romano for grating on top); 2 pieces Egg Yolks (2 large egg yolks); ½ tsp Black Pepper (½ tsp black pepper); ½ tsp Dried Basil (½ tsp dried basil you can also use 1-2 tsp of finely chopped fresh basil); 0 pieces Olive Oil Cooking Spray (olive oil cooking spray); 0 pieces Basil (optional garnishes: chopped fresh basil or parsley) — optional

Hollowed tomatoes are filled with a savory mixture of sautéed spinach, onions, garlic, cottage cheese, and Parmesan, then baked until bubbly.

60 minItalian

Servings4

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Vegetarian
Gluten Free
Pescatarian
Halal

Ingredients

For 4 servings

Extra Virgin Olive Oil2 tbsp · 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Tomato4 pieces · 4 large ripe red tomatoes beefsteak or other large tomato variety
Table Salt0 tsp · salt for draining tomatoes + 1 tsp salt
Yellow Onion½ piece · ½ medium onion finely diced- I use Vidalia but white or yellow onion works here too
Garlic1 clove · 1 large garlic clove minced
Spinach12 oz · 12 oz frozen spinach thawed, drained, and completely squeezed dry
Cottage Cheese1 ¼ cup · 1¼ cup 2% cottage cheese small curd
Parmesan Cheese½ cup · ½ cup shredded parmesan cheese + block of parmesan or pecorino romano for grating on top
Egg Yolks2 pieces · 2 large egg yolks
Black Pepper½ tsp · ½ tsp black pepper
Dried Basil½ tsp · ½ tsp dried basil you can also use 1-2 tsp of finely chopped fresh basil
Olive Oil Cooking Spray0 pieces · olive oil cooking spray
Basil0 pieces · optional garnishes: chopped fresh basil or parsley · optional

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Steps

1Wash the tomatoes and pat dry. Slice the top off and hollow out the inside of the tomato, being careful not to pierce the sides. I use a small paring knife for this, running it around the inside and scoring it into 4 sections to remove. Carefully scoop out the cavity with a large spoon, removing the seeds and membrane.
2Salt the cavities and place them upside down on paper towels to drain for 30 minutes.
3Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. While the tomatoes are draining, prepare the filling.
4Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute the onion until translucent, about 3-4 minutes.
5Add the garlic and drained spinach to the skillet, cover, and cook on low heat for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
6In a large bowl, stir together the cottage cheese, parmesan cheese, egg yolks, salt, pepper, and basil until combined.
7Add the spinach mixture to the bowl and stir the filling well to mix.
8Pat the tomato cavities dry with paper towels and place them into a greased square baking dish. Spoon the spinach mixture into the tomatoes. Spray with olive oil spray (or drizzle with olive oil- I do both) and bake for 25 minutes.
9Using a microplane grater, finely grate some extra parmesan cheese on top of each tomato and bake for 5-7 minutes more, until th cheese is melted and tomatoes are bubbly.
10Garnish with coarse salt and freshly chopped parsley or basil, if desired.