Faux “Fried” Coral Tomatoes

An August garden is pregnant with expectations.

The garden I share with my friends Karen and Kate has a tomato jungle.

The three plants have over run three concentric layers of “cages.” They’re now trying to colonize the carrots.

Unrelenting weeks of sun and heat have battered our 10 by 14 foot plot in Karen’s backyard. LA’s water rationing has taken its toll as well.

No matter. The tomatoes seem to ripen from pearl green to bloody red as you watch. The vines are heavy with fruit.

We know that soon – very soon – we’ll be overrun with ripe tomatoes. We wait. We watch. We talk about canning, tomato sauce and ratatouille.

Impatient for the harvest, we’ve been experimenting with fried green tomatoes. It’s a preview of what’s to come. It’s a wonderful summer supper. And it’s a delicious way to thin the vines for better growth.

The following recipe is “faux fried” because it’s baked. The oil in frying can overpower the delicate flavor of baby tomatoes.

We also use Panko flakes, Japanese breadcrumbs made of wheat flour, soybeans, and other things, instead of the traditional corn meal.

I refer to coral tomatoes because their cooked flavor will send you to your knees savoring the flavor.

Any tomato up to ripe one can be fried (or faux fried). We searched out sister tomatoes in clusters that had an almost ripe tomato. Despite my elegy to coral tomatoes, don’t pass up the green ones.

You'll need:

4 to 6 green to coral tomatoes, cut into ¼-inch thick slices

2 eggs, beaten

2/3 cup evaporated milk

1/3 cup water

Salt and pepper

1.5 cups Panko flakes

Salt and pepper each side of the tomato slices. Grease a large shallow baking pan or cooking sheet. Heat the oven to 400 degrees.

Mix the eggs, milk and water in a shallow bowl. Put the Panko flakes (or cornmeal, matzoh meal or flour) in another shallow dish.

Dip each slice into the liquid, then coat both sides with crumbs. (For a thicker coating, do this step twice for each slice.) Arrange the tomatoes in a single layer in the prepared baking pan. The slices should not touch.

Bake 10 minutes. Turn each slice over. Bake another 10 minutes.

Enjoy!

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