I have posted about my love of green tomatoes in the past, but you can never sing their praises too often. They are one of those vegetables that no one has figured out how to bring to the market in the middle of January. Only in the mid to late summer can you find beautiful green tomatoes right off the vine carrying that pungent fragrance. My husband Steve had a fascinating aunt, Rubie, who when she was very much alive and a gardening fool, would send me a big box of green tomatoes individually wrapped in newspaper that she instructed me to “fry up and few and set the rest on the window sill to ripen.” You know what, that’s exactly what I did and I had sunny, bright red tomatoes for weeks throughout the early fall.
The green ones that I fried got this treatment. To serve six people, you will need about 5 large green tomatoes.
5 large green tomatoes, washed, cored, and cut, crosswise, into ½-inch thick slices
2 large eggs
½ cup buttermilk
2 cups Wondra flour
1 cup cornmeal
Salt and pepper to taste
Oil of choice – I use canola
Place the tomato slices on double layers of paper towel to drain slightly.
Whisk the eggs and buttermilk together in a large, shallow bowl.
Place 1 cup of the Wondra flour in a large shallow bowl.
Combine the remaining cup of flour, cornmeal, and salt and pepper in another large, shallow bowl.
Heat a thin layer of oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. When the oil is hot, working with one at a time, dip the tomato slices into the plain flour, then into the milk mixture and finally into the flour-cornmeal mixture, pressing down to coat evenly. Shake off excess and place in the hot pan.
Fry each slice for about 3 minutes. Turn and fry for another 3 minutes or until crisp and golden on both sides. Using a slotted spatula, lift the slices from the pan and place on paper towel to drain.
Serve hot with a spritz of fresh lemon or any tart relish or condiment. Or, if you like, make a cream gravy in the pan and drizzle over the tomatoes.
judithchoate.com 