8/6/11

tomato & cheddar hand pies



This has to be the fastest meal I've ever made. How these came about? We all know the familiar sad pre-dinner scene: look into fridge, see nothing but condiments, beverages, and something rotting in the vegetable drawer. Closing the fridge door in frustration I see all the tomatoes on the counter, then realize I did just see cheese in the fridge. Plus the fact that my fridge/freezer does always have an abundance of pie crusts: homemade and pre-made. Score. I have dinner. One of the favorite ways to use up fresh tomatoes from the garden is in tomato and cheese sammies with a hint of mayo. I love them, especially if you use a good, thick, whole grain bread. So if these two ingredients are good in a sandwich then why not a hand pie? Almost like a grilled cheese with extra, crispy crust? Kind of. You get the idea.

And since we're on the subject of savory pies--do you know that my tomato pie is the 3rd highest downloaded recipe this summer? Good to know. It's a good pie for hot summer nights paired with cold white wine.
Have I ever made a 'savory something' with pre-made pie crusts? Yes, I've made cheese sticks. (I promise to do a post on that soon).

tomato & cheese hand pies

tomato & cheese hand pies

tomato & cheese hand pies

tomato & cheese hand pies
print recipe

Pie crust or premade pie crusts
Tomatoes, sliced very thin
Extra sharp cheddar
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt & pepper

Cook notes:
I’ve left out the quantities as you can make as little or much as you like. Typically it’s about 3 slices of tomato on the inside of the pie and one slice on the top of the pie. Please slice the tomatoes really thin, and let them dry out a bit on paper towels. You don’t want juicy tomatoes weighing down or steaming up the inside of the hand pies.

When ready to bake. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Lay out your crusts in a circle (or square). Cut them in half, put down a layer of tomatoes (about 3 slices), then top with a few slices of cheese—don’t let cheese get too close to edges.
Fold over the other half of the pie crust, seal all edges; crimp with a fork. Place a slice tomato on the top of the hand pie, brush with a little extra virgin olive oil, then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Make sure to prick a few holes on top to let any steam escape during baking.
Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until the edges are nice and crispy brown. I like them a little overdone. Do what you like.

47 comments:

  1. What could be more perfect for quick lunches or dinners? I always have cheese, and various types of pie crust, in the freezer.

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  2. Those look so good! Now I need to make some pie dough so I can have some on hand.

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  3. Damn, girl! So resourceful. I L-O-V-E grilled cheese with slices of tomato, so why not wrap it in pie crust?! Definitely on my to-do list next time I end up with too much dough.

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  4. I've been wanting to make your other tomato pie for a while now but never really had enough people to make it for. Glad I can kinda make it in an individual portion! :)

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  5. i love this! i want this! like a savory pop tart. yum.

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  6. I'd eat one of these for dinner ina heartbeat!

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  7. Holy deliciousness!! I'm all over this.

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  8. This has be salivating, what a great thing to whip up on the fly

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  9. Genius! I make tomato bread every summer - tomato slices and cheese on French bread - but I'm definitely gonna go the pie route this summer. Thanks for sharing!

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  10. I can barely breathe these look so good. I can also barely breathe because there is little to no pie crust in my freezer and so I can't make these immediately. I think the world is ending.

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  11. I made these for dinner tonight. They were great. I was a little too skimpy on the cheese and tomato though. Next time I'll use more. Thanks so much for sharing.

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  12. I just ate a desperation lunch of a single piece of toast with a smear of Nutella. Gawd, how I wish I had one of these babies instead...

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  13. Ummm yum. I love the cheese popping out of the pie.

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  14. This looks like the best version of grilled cheese with tomato that I've ever seen. I love the combo- totally delicious.

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  15. Love these little pies! Now can you come make me some for lunch? :)

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  16. What marvelous creations! Those hand pies must be incredibly tasty and enjoyable.

    Cheers,

    Rosa

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  17. You are welcome to bring these over any time.

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  18. You are sooo smart! I can't wait to make some. I will have to make or buy some crust first.

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  19. Ok, yes please and thank you very much. We have somewhat sad tomato offerings in our fair city and kind of sucky climate but make this way, even our tomatoes would be delicious. Like you, I always have some kind of crust in the freezer. Score!

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  20. other than the copious cheese, my favorite part of this is the little roasted tomato on top--nice touch!

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  21. I cannot believe these are such a fast meal - these savory pies look wonderful!

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  22. oh yum! can't wait to try these

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  23. I'm so digging this amiga! Looks super easy (and delish of course).

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  24. These look fabulous! We love pasties in this part of the country. I wonder how these would freeze?

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  25. Rebecca Brillinger8/9/11, 3:35 PM

    I love these! I made them with tomato basil cheddar cheese that I found and they were SO GOOD!

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  26. And you just made these on the spur of the moment? Your amazing! You've given me inspiration!

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  27. This was awesome! I added bacon to mine and it was soooooo good! Next time, Hubby says I should try pepper jack cheese and jalapenos. YUM! Thanks for a great recipe!

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  28. These sound delicious and so simple - love it! I love the little tomatoes on top. I bet they are yummy...

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  29. It's midnight, but now I'm wanting one of these hand pies!!!

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  30. YOu need to make these again! THey were really, really good!

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  31. Just the idea of a pie you can hold in your hand, GENIUS!

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  32. This is why you are a successful blogger and I'm not! :-) Such a perfect idea, and you could do so many variations with different vegetables and cheeses. There is something so comforting about this kind of old-fashioned food: like Cornish pasties, pirogie, etc. Thanks for the inspiration!

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  33. My gosh these look incredible! I want one so bad. Yeah I am definitely going to give this a try soon. Thanks for sharing!

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  34. Like a tomato grilled cheese sandwich only better with light flaky buttery pastry!

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  35. OMG. i want. i want to make a tomato corn pie this weekend... but this, i hope i have extra tomatoes :)

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  36. Love that you can take a premade store crust and make something so decadent and savory. Yum!

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  37. So simple and what's nice is you can add in anything more like avocado slices or even a slice of meat.

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  38. What lovely little savory pies - great idea! And the fun variations are endless :)

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  39. This looks really easy, but absolutely delicious. I want to make these ... maybe add some of my tons of zucchini that I have to the inside so that it kind of resembles a portable version of a ricotta zucchini galette ..

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  40. Oh my! I want one of these for lunch, or dinner, or breakfast. Please?

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  41. Made these for dinner tonight and they were divine! So simple and so tasty! Thank you!

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  42. Yum! This looks mouthwatering too! Loving looking through all your tasty posts :)

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  43. OMG i'm salivating! Would it work with puff pastry?

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  44. I tried this with shredded rotisserie chicken and sliced apples.... wow

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