Recipes and styling by Nomvuselelo Mncube
Photographs by Dylan Swart
Vegetarian-stuffed tomatoes
Ingredients
- 8 medium heirloom tomatoes
- FILLING
- 15g butter
- 2 medium red peppers, cubed
- 3 spring onions, chopped
- 250g button mushrooms, sliced
- 100g sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
- 60g pine nuts
- 1 x 400g tin lentils, drained and rinsed
- 100g ricotta cheese, crumbled
- 100g feta cheese, crumbled
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 150g basil pesto
- handful fresh chives, chopped + extra, snipped, to garnish
- Parmesan, grated, to top
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Using a sharp knife, cut the tops off the tomatoes and cut around the inside, separating the flesh from the skin. Scoop out the flesh with a spoon. Place the tomato shells on a small baking tray and set aside until needed.
For the filling, melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Once melted, add the peppers, spring onions and mushrooms and fry until cooked and the water evaporates, about 15 minutes. Add the remaining filling ingredients, except the pesto and chives, and stir until well combined. Season to taste, then stir in the pesto and chives.
Fill each tomato with the filling. Top with grated Parmesan and bake in the oven until light brown in colour, 15 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool, 15 minutes, before sprinkling with snipped chives to serve.
