A savory summertime Tomato Pie made by layering tomatoes slices, basil onion and a cheese spread into a pie crust and baking it until golden and bubbly. This is the perfect recipe for using up your excess fresh garden tomatoes!
I don't have my own garden to care for (it's still on my bucket list), but every summer I like to go to Farmer's markets and buy a big box of fresh tomatoes. I'll make a big batch of our favorite homemade salsa and I usually end up canning tomatoes and making this amazing tomato pie!
If you've never tried tomato pie, you absolutely have to! It's a southern dish that is one of my favorites–especially when it's made with fresh garden tomatoes.
How to make Tomato Pie:
Start by pre-baking your pie shell for a few minutes. I highly suggest using a homemade pie crust for this recipe, not just because it tastes better, but because it will not brown as quickly as a store-bought crust.
I make this recipe for perfect pie crust, and I follow the instructions at the bottom of the post for blind baking the crust by putting parchment paper and pie weights down on the pie crust and baking for just 15-20 minutes. (If using a store-bought crust, only bake for a few minutes, and probably even less than instructed on the package. Store-bought crusts are thinner and will brown faster.) Then I continue with this recipe.
I think roma tomatoes work best for this recipe, but you can use any tomatoes you have on hand.
While the crust is pre-baking, slice the tomatoes into thin slices and lay them in a single layer in the colander. Sprinkle salt over the tomatoes to help bring out their liquid, and let them rest for 10 minutes.
Use a paper towel to blot the excess juice out. This step is really important if you don't want to end up with a soggy tomato pie.
Make the cheese topping by combining the mayonnaise or plain Greek yogurt, cheddar cheese and mozzarella.
Layer the tomato slices into the bottom of your pre-baked pie shell. Chop your basil and green onions and sprinkle them over the tomatoes. Smooth the cheese mixture onto the top of the pie, and then it's ready to bake! Bake the tomato pie for 30 minutes or until it is lightly browned!
Be sure to allow the pie at least 15-20 minutes to cool off before you cut into it. The longer it rests, the most it well set up and it will be easier to serve.
I've found that tomato pie is best served fresh, but you can store the leftovers covered, in the fridge.
What kind of tomatoes should I use for tomato pie?
To make tomato pie, I recommend using Roma tomatoes. Roma tomatoes are a more firm tomato that are not as juicy and don't contain as much liquid as other tomatoes. This is important because if your tomatoes contain a lot of liquid, they can cause your crust to get soggy. That being said, you can be successful making this recipe with any type of garden tomato.
Can you freeze tomato pie?
While freezing tomato pie is possible, I would have to discourage you from doing this. The tomatoes make the crust soggy and the topping on this recipe contains mayonnaise, which doesn't freeze well. However, you can use a frozen pie crust to make tomato pie! See my perfect pie crust recipe for tips for freezing and blind-baking (pre-baking) your pie crust!
Looking for more tomato recipes? Consider trying these tomato based recipes:
- Tomato Basil Mozzarella Toasts
- Tomato Basil Chicken Pasta
- Creamy Tomato and Spinach Tortellini Soup
- How to Make Canned Tomatoes
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Recipe
Tomato Pie
Equipment
Ingredients
- 5 roma tomatoes , peeled and sliced
- 10 fresh basil leaves , chopped
- 1/2 cup green onion (or red onion), chopped
- 1 9-inch pre-baked pie crust
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup freshly shredded cheddar cheese
- 3/4 cup mayonnaise (or half mayo, half Greek yogurt)
- 2 Tablespoons freshly grated parmesan cheese
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Place the tomatoes in a colander in the sink in a single layer. Sprinkle with salt and allow them to rest for 10 minutes.
- Use a paper towel to pat-dry the tomatoes and make sure most of the excess juice is out. (You don't want wet (juicy) tomatoes or your pie will turn out soggy).
- Layer the tomato slices, basil, and onion in pre-baked pie shell (see my note above in the post about how I prepare the pie crust.) Season with salt and pepper.
- Combine the grated cheeses and mayonnaise or Greek yogurt together.
- Spread mixture on top of the tomatoes and sprinkle parmesan cheese on top.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until lightly browned. Allow to rest for at least 15 minutes before cutting and serving.
- You might also like, Garden Vegetable Pie.
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?!
RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.
I originally shared this recipe in July 2014. Updated July 2018.
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LOVE this recipe! The first bite took me back to baking tomato pies in the kitchen with my mama, grandmother, and great-grandmother.
I have made this tomato pie about 6 times this summer. OMG!!! It is absolutely delicious. I have shared them with family, friends and neighbors and everyone raved about how good they were. I have given out many copies of the recipe!!!
Easy and delicious! My tomatoes were pretty juicy so I’d make sure to pat them good on a paper towel first.
I have tried tomato pie recipes before, but didn’t like them. This was great. I have many, many home-grown tomatoes to use up since they are not keeping well this year. I used enough cut up tomatoes to cover bottom very well (thick), but had to make sure there wasn’t too much juice. I used the red onions, and I used 1/2 plain Greek yogurt and 1/2 mayo. It would have been way to rich with all mayo! Let it cook until cheese was slightly charred – Awesome!
I make a pizza pie like this, no top crust and it is delicious…..it is an Amish recipe I have in a cookbook.
I made one and we all loved it…..
My daughter doesn’t like a lot of crust, so the pizza pie works out great…..
I haven’t made your recipe, but I know it will be excellent…..so rating it now, because I made one similar to yours…..
So anyone who wants to try this, they won’t regret it……
Yes, finally a dish that my whole family loves! My littles don’t really eat fresh veggies, but they loved this. They even asked for seconds 🙂 Thanks for the great recipe.
I made this last night – it was excellent! I put the cheddar cheese directly on the cooked pie crust to act as barrier – worked very well to keep the crust from getting soggy. I also didn’t have mozzarella so I substituted pepper jack, I didn’t use any onion, and used less mayo. Really tasty – even cold for lunch the next day:)
This was great! I’ve made it with both the green and red onions. And I’ve substituted sage for the basil for a bit of a different flavor. Love the Greek yogurt too!!
Hello,
Can you freeze this and reheat it?
Hi Becky, I haven’t experimented with freezing this recipe, so I can’t say for sure. I’d love to hear if you try it!
Would it be a problem to prepare the pie the day before and bake it the next day? I wanted to make one for my parents, but wasn’t sure if the crust would get soggy.
Hi Misty. I would prepare all of the ingredients and store them separately, so the pie crust doesn’t get soggy. You can cut the tomatoes, onion, basil. Make the topping. Store everything, covered, in the fridge. Bake your pie crust and let it cool on your kitchen counter overnight. Then, the next day, all you have to do is assemble the pie (which should take 5 minutes) 🙂 and bake it! Hope that helps. And I hope you and your parents love this recipe!
I’ve had no problems with the post. Everything’s there, clearly stated. This pie is delicious!!
I followed your instructions exactly, especially about getting as much juice out of the tomatoes as possible. The pie was delicious and beautiful. The second pie I made, I added some crisp crumbled bacon, this was terrific as well.
Thank you so much for this simple, easy way to take advantage of the summer bounty.