Fried green tomatoes

If your child loves french fries and tomatoes, then they will love fried green tomatoes. Or, they will reject them out of hand because they're mercurial toddlers like mine. One day, M will love these. I'm sure of it.

I just dropped M off for his first day of a new school year. He was only off for a week between "grades" but I felt so nervous this morning! M had a tough time adjusting to his last classroom and now he has new grownups, a new space, and some new kids to contend with. Ugh. I don't like change. That must be where M gets it.

We also have a nut allergy in the classroom this year, so I'll be more mindful of nut-free recipes for lunches and snacks.

ALSO also, after just a week off from packing lunches, I forgot what a huge drag it is. My sympathies go out to those of you getting back to it after an ENTIRE summer off. Strength to you, fellow lunch-packers.

The keys to good fried green tomatoes, to me, are soaking overnight in buttermilk, and cooking with HOT oil. I've gotten equally delicious and crunchy results from using a little bit of oil and a lot of oil, but the heat seemed like the common denominator.

I also experimented a lot with corn flour and different grinds of cornmeal. I initially liked corn flour the best, but it's very easy to get too much flour, which doesn't cook evenly. (Picture #2 was taken BEFORE I knocked off the excess.) Ultimately, my favorite was straight-up, finely ground cornmeal.

Fried green tomatoes

3-4 large green tomatoes, sliced in ¼-inch thick slices
1-2 cups buttermilk, full or low-fat (enough to cover the tomato slices)
1 tsp salt, divided
1 cup finely ground cornmeal
½ tsp paprika
Ground pepper
¼ cup avocado oil
Course sea salt

Slice the tomatoes and discard the end pieces. Place the tomatoes in a container and cover them with buttermilk. Add ½ tsp salt, cover, and shake. Refrigerate for at least a few hours and up to 1 day.

Combine the corn meal, salt, paprika, and pepper in a large container. Set aside. Heat one to two tablespoons of avocado oil at a time until very hot.

Working one at a time, shake off excess buttermilk and immediately place the tomato slice in the cornmeal mixture. Cover both sides well, but shake off the excess cornmeal as well.

When the oil is hot (when you add anything to the oil, it immediately starts bubbling), add the tomatoes (as many as will fit in your pan, but don’t crowd them; work in batches), and fry for 3 minutes. Check for brownness and flip when golden. When second side reaches golden brown, remove to a paper towel and sprinkle with coarse sea salt.

Between batches of tomatoes, pour out any leftover oil and carefully wipe off any cornmeal left in the pan. Heat two more tablespoons of avocado oil and repeat the cooking process with remaining tomatoes.

Yield: 12-16 tomato slices

Tomato soup and cheese waffles

Well, we're two months into official winter and it FINALLY snowed for real in NYC. We've had some accumulation here and there, but it was always sandwiched between 50-degree days and melted right away. The only things I like about snow are the quiet, dampened hush that blankets even this manic city, and the excuse to make tomato soup and cheese waffles. Grilled cheese is the typical tomato soup accessory, but I've made these waffles for M a few times this winter and it was time to break them out again.

I've thought about making these with whole wheat flour, but snow days feel a little indulgent. Also, to cart a toddler around a city in the snow, Ethan and I take turns on human sled-dog duty because no way are a stroller or little legs making it over those snow drifts. So...we earn that white flour. And, on the flip side, the soup is Whole 30 as long as you use clarified butter and compliant chicken stock. On balance, this meal is healthy-ish.

A couple of notes: I like to use parmesan and mozzarella in these waffles, but one could easily sub other cheeses. And don't be shy with the pepper. It may seem like too much to feed a toddler, but the pepper really gives the waffles a punch and doesn't taste spicy in the final product. AND the Tbsp of maple syrup (or sugar of your choice) is vital. I've omitted it before and the waffles don't taste the same.

If possible, look for homemade chicken stock or, if you can muster the energy, make your own. I am unbelievably lazy about making my own because we have a store near us that sells delicious and inexpensive homemade stocks. I will say, if we ever leave the city and don't have access to said stock, I'll start making me own. The difference is remarkable. And try to use the potatoes. While ESSENTIAL if you don't have any on hand, the potatoes and the butter give the soup its creaminess without adding actual cream.

First things first, get your soup started.

Non-dairy Creamy Tomato soup

2 Tbsp butter (clarified or regular)
½ red onion, roughly chopped
2 large cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
3 new potatoes or 1 small russet potato, diced into 1/2-inch cubes (about 6 oz)
2 Tbsp tomato paste
28 oz box or can of diced tomatoes
2 cups rich chicken stock
2 cups water
1 bay leaf
Optional: 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
Fresh oregano

Melt the butter over a medium low flame. Add roughly chopped onions and caramelize for 5-10 minutes. The more color the onions have, the sweeter and deeper the flavor will be in the finished product. When onions are caramelized, add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the potato and tomato paste and stir to coat, cooking for about 1 minute.

Add the tomatoes, chicken stock, water, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, cover, and turn down flame to low. Simmer for 30 minutes. Whizz the finished soup in your blender or with a hand blender. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add a glug of balsamic vinegar and/or some fresh oregano, if desired.

Yield: about 6 cups or 48 oz

Savory cheese waffles

Adapted from Martha Stewart
1 cup white flour
¾ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 egg, lightly whisked
3/4 cup buttermilk
½ cup parmesan
½ cup mozzarella
1 Tbsp maple syrup

Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl and stir lightly to combine. Add the lightly whisked egg, buttermilk, cheeses, and maple syrup and stir to combine.

Spoon 3 Tbsp of batter onto each side of your waffle maker and cook according to your machine’s directions. If you like a larger waffle, spoon ¼ cup onto each side. In that case, yield will be about 5-6 squares.

Yield: about 8 waffles