Broiled Parmesan Tomatoes {Portion Fix/21 Day Fix}

Summertime around here means there are plenty of homegrown tomatoes to go around! But after a week or two, you start to think “what can I do with these?” Then I remembered an old-fashioned dish of Broiled Parmesan Tomatoes and decided to try it out on my Hubby. 

I already make an opened faced sandwich that likes pretty good. A Kentucky Hot Brown Sandwich has a broiled tomato topping on top of it. Recipe HERE.

I prefer mine with the traditional “gravy” topping but my Hubby prefers his without it.

He loves the tomato and cheese combo with meat and bread attached so I decided to just try just the tomato and cheese part. 

Start with good tomatoes for these Broiled Parmesan Tomatoes

To have a flavorful dish you need to start with some really good tomatoes. We happen to grow our own in our small garden. But our tomatoes are not ripe yet.

If you don’t grow your own, you could try going to a local Farmer’s Market for some. My country girl’s advice is “never buy a cold tomato”. If you ever chill one in a fridge or cooler you kill the taste. Tomatoes are one of those veggies that you are supposed to never refrigerate until you use. I do refrigerate leftover tomatoes that I have cut but they just won’t have the flavor of fresh when I use them again.  

I often use leftover tomatoes to make my pico de gallo because I am going to add so much flavor to the bowl anyway. Recipe HERE. 

I bought some “vine-ripe” ones from our local grocery store. 

Now the cheese part of these Broiled Parmesan Tomatoes

You are going to want a really good Parmesan cheese. Do not try to use the powdery kind that people use to top spaghetti or pizza with. Just don’t.

There are some decent shredded varieties available in most grocery stores. I almost never buy pre-shredded cheese because it doesn’t melt right because of chemical additives. Parmesan cheese is an exception to that rule, cheese for tacos is another. They do not have to “melt” for me to get the flavor I want. For these tomatoes, I just want the Parmesan to brown while the tomato gets hot under it. 

If I am feeling fancy I buy a block of Parmesan and shave it. I decided to do it in a few ways to show you the differences in looks, you will just have to trust me about the flavors, HA! I picked up both of these at my little Walmart. 

Speaking of flavors…

There are ways to change the basic flavor of this side dish. My favorite ways to make changes are to add some herbs. 

 

A fresh basil topper or a teaspoon of pesto is great!!

 

Use the right pan

Because you are going to broil these tomatoes, you have to use a broiler-safe pan. Most glass can not be broiled. My new favorite pan for this kind of dish is a cast-iron one. 

They are just the right size for this size of tomatoes!!

Let’s get started

I am making 2 pans today, with 2 different kinds of cheese, the shaved Parmesan, and the pre-shredded Parmesan.

I am using this thicker shaving on top of the thicker tomatoes. Just cut them in half and then drain them on paper towels, cut side down. You don’t want them to be super wet because they are going to continue to make “juice” as they cook.

I measured 1 Blue container of shaved parmesan but ended up not using all of it. You could totally use it all or just use 1/2 container. 

 

 I used about 4 tablespoons and had 1 tablespoon left to put over my salmon. That I broiled at the same time. 

The second pan of Broiled Parmesan Tomatoes

The second pan of Broiled Parmesan Tomatoes is going to be a little different. I cut 1 tomato into 3 slices and filled the pan with them. 

One tablespoon of pre-shredded Parmesan is plenty for me, again you could use more if you wanted. I often break my Blue container into 5 Tablespoons and spread it out during the day. I have more info about cheese in HERE.

Don’t you love to get your cheese a little golden, brown even! There is nothing like browned cheese!!

One medium tomato is 1 Green container, so just count how much you eat. I only add salt and pepper when they are on my plate. Salt can make them get a little more watery. 

These would be perfect beside a pasta dish. Like this Beef Bolognese recipe HERE. 

I put them on this plateful of goodness while I was working on a spicy new shrimp recipe.