Mayonnaise Pie Is the Bomb

When the truly epic tomatoes are ripe on the vine, it’s time to show them off in a pretty tart or pie. Most of the gorgeous tomato tarts you will see in magazines or on websites are made with a pastry crust that takes a bunch of time, or a puff pastry crust that is made with either butter or shortening, which may not fit with your eating plan. The also rely on cheese to hold it all together, and I didn’t want that.

Being a busy cook, like you, I wanted to make a pie that rivaled those photogenic tarts, but that took less time and effort. So I combined a Southern mayonnaise biscuit recipe I’d seen around, with my homemade aquafaba-cashew mayo, and then topped it with sliced heirloom tomatoes. Instead of a cheesey topping, I simply stirred lemon juice into some of my homemade mayo and drizzled it over the tart at serving.

It’s so delicious!

Mayo Does the Job

Of course, you can use any mayo you like, and any non-dairy milk you have on hand. The reason the mayo works as a stand-in for butter or shortening is that it is mostly fat, but it is good fat. Mayo also brings some acid, salt, and other flavors to the biscuit crust, without having to measure anything but that mayo. My homemade mayo has dijon mustard, cashews, and aquafaba, which acts as a binder. If you make the Aquafaba Cashew Aioli, you can go ahead and add the garlic, or leave it out for a plain mayo. Both are delicious in this recipe.

I used a beautiful assortment of tomatoes, but you can use whatever tomatoes are ripest and have the best flavor. I got mine from Dorothy Stainbrook of Heath Glen Farms at the St Paul Farmers Market. Shop with this tart in mind, and look for nice round tomatoes that are about 4 inches across, for the most even rows. Mine is less picture perfect because I used oddly shaped but DELICIOUS heirlooms.

For me, flavor is more important than a perfect picture.

Please let me know when you try my pie, instagram it and post it and give me a shout out, if you like it.

I know we ate every tomatoey, mayo-drizzled crumb, and it tasted like Summer!

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Tomato Mayonnaise Pie

Whether you make your own mayonnaise, or simply buy it, this pie is an easy way to showcase the best tomatoes of summer.

Course Main Course

Keyword biscuit crust pie, vegan tomato tart

Servings 6

Author Robin Asbell

Ingredients

• 8 assorted heirloom tomatoes
• 1 cup unbleached flour plus more for shaping
• 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 cup non-dairy milk ( I used oat, any will do)
• 1/2 cup aquafaba mayo or other mayo
• 1/2 cup fresh basil
• coarse salt

Drizzle

• 1/2 cup aquafaba mayo or other mayo
• 1-2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 375 F. Lime a jelly roll pan with parchment paper and brush the paper with olive oil.

  Slice the tomatoes in rounds, about 1/3 inch thick. Reserve
• In a large bowl, combine the flours, baking powder, salt and oregano. Stir to combine.
• In a cup, stir the milk and 1/2 cup mayo until smooth.
• Pour the milk mixture over the flour mixture and stir just until mixed, don't over-stir. It will be a soft, sticky dough.

  Spread the dough in the prepared pan, sprinkling with flour and patting out with your hands.
• When the dough is evenly spread in the pan, arrange sliced tomatoes on the dough in rows. Sprinkle with coarse salt.
• Bake for about 35 minutes, until the bottom of the crust is browned and the tomatoes are soft and slightly shrunken. Let cool on a rack.
• To serve, sliver the basil and scatter over the pie. Cut in 6-8 squares. Mix the remaining mayo and lemon juice in a cup and drizzle over each slice as it is served.