Stuffed Tomatoes with Rice, Basil, and Parmesan + Downloadable Art Prints

September 22, 2020

We’ve made it to that funny in-between season in the midst of the tail-end of summer and the first wisps of fall. This time of year always feels like a bit of a transitional period, but with all that’s happening right now with school starting up again and workplaces shifting routines, that transitional feeling is even more present. Many of us are schooling and working from home at the moment (my household included), and have established new routines that revolve staying home and inside a lot more than we normally would. One thing that’s really helped make this new routine easier is making my home feel like a really warm, cozy, and joyful place to be, and part of that has been printing out my favorite photographs with my Canon PIXMA TR4520 and hanging them up on the walls. The vibrant colors, calming scenes, and crisp matte prints make me happy and soothed every time I look at them, and I’ve included a free download for 6 of my favorite photo prints for you here!

Stuffed Tomatoes with Rice Having high-quality physical prints that print true-to-color is deeply important to me, especially when I’m looking at them everyday on the walls of my home. And with the Canon PIXMA TR4520, I get a crisp, colorful, and perfectly contrasted print every time. Plus they have an incredible selection of fun photo papers, ranging from magnetic ones (so you can place your favorite photos on your refrigerator or anything you’ve painted with magnetic paint), to professional quality matte photo paper (which is what I use to print out my photographs). If you’re looking for an affordable at-home printer that gives you bonkers-amazing quality prints, I’d highly recommend it (especially for all the holiday greeting printing coming up!) Plus, you guys know that when you support my partners, you’re also helping me be able to continue bringing you flavorful seasonal recipes + garden goodness on the regular 🙂

Stuffed Tomatoes Canon And along with the free photo print download, Canon is also sharing a free e-book with the recipe for these stuffed tomatoes + loads of delicious other recipes from fellow food bloggers, and you can download it here! I’d love to see you making these stuffed tomatoes or any other dish from the e-book, so make sure to mark them with the #CanonInTheKitchen hashtag so I can see your creations!

Eva Kosmas Flores Tomatoes About these stuffed tomatoes, they’re based on a recipe my mom made for us every summer growing up. As soon as the garden started popping out tomatoes, she’d start scooping out their juicy goodness, mixing it with rice and ground meat and garlic and herbs, and stuff it back in before roasting it all up together. Every time I eat this it reminds me of those hot summer evenings as a kid, all sitting around our dinner table, enjoying the sweet and savory flavor of summer’s parting gift. I hope you enjoy it, too!

Stuffed Tomatoes with Rice, Basil, and Parmesan

Course Dinner

Cuisine Greek

Keyword stuffed tomatoes

Prep Time 45 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour 20 minutes

Servings 6 people

Calories 423kcal

Ingredients

Stuffed Tomatoes

6 large tomatoes
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil plus a bit extra for brushing
1 medium yellow onion chopped
3 cloves garlic minced
1 small eggplant about 3 ounces, chopped
1 pound ground beef or lamb
3 cups cooked rice
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup broth chicken, beef or vegetable all work fine

Breadcrumb Mixture

1/4 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon olive oil

Instructions

Stuffed Tomatoes

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Cut the *very* tops off of each of the tomatoes and use a spoon to scoop out the soft juicy pulp, while leaving the walls of the tomatoes intact. Place the tomato pulp in a bowl and set it aside, and set the hollowed out tomatoes aside and their caps/tops as well.
For the filling, heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until softened and transparent, about 8 to 10 minutes, stirring every few minutes. Add the garlic and allow to cook until the garlic is softened and fragrant, about 5 minutes more, stirring every minute or so. Add the eggplant and cook until it's softened a bit, about 5 to 7 minutes. Push the vegetables to the sides of the pan, leaving the center empty. Then add the ground beef or lamb to the empty center space, and sauté until cooked through, breaking the meat apart into small pieces with the end of your wooden spoon as it cooks.
Remove from heat and empty into a large heat-proof bowl (like a metal, glass, or ceramic one). Measure out two cups of the tomato pulp mixture and add it to the meat mixture. Add the rice, parmesan, basil, parsley, salt, and pepper and stir to combine.

Breadcrumb Mixture

In a small bowl, stir together the breadcrumbs, salt, garlic powder, and thyme. Drizzle with the olive oil and stir it up with a fork to lightly coat the breadcrumbs in the oil. Set it aside.

Assembly

Evenly spread out 1/4 of the meat mixture on the bottom of a greased 9 x 13-inch casserole or baking pan. Place the six hollowed out tomatoes in the pan, and fill them with the meat mixture. Place any remaining meat mixture between the outside of tomatoes in the pan, filling up any crevices and gaps between the stuffed tomatoes. Pour the chicken stock into the pan.
Sprinkle the breadcrumb mixture over the filling in each of the tomatoes, and sprinkle it on the filling between the tomatoes in the pan. Place the caps on the tomatoes and, using a pastry brush, lightly brush the tops of the caps and any exposed skin of the stuffed tomatoes with some olive oil. Place the pan in the oven and bake until the tomato caps get golden patches and the filling is bubbling and fragrant, about 45 to 55 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve.