Okay, so this Gemista (stuffed tomatoes) recipe probably isn't the most autumnal or seasonal recipe, but after a recent busy day in work I needed something quick and easy (but still super tasty) to whip up for tea.
And this got me thinking back to summer and a spur of the moment holiday with my Mum and Sister. We love girly holidays in the sun, with nothing to do but sit by the pool, sunbathe and read books.
Of course, this is always followed by a good meal in the evening.
Our usual "go-to" holiday destination isĀ Turkey. We love Turkish weather and food! But this year we decided to break from tradition and try somewhere different. We ended up finding a deal in Kefalonia.
I'd never been to Kefalonia before, and had only been to mainland Greece as a teenager, so was a little rusty on what it would be like.
My biggest memories were pretty much living off souvlaki the whole holiday.
It's safe to say, Kefalonia was amazing.
It had it all, beautiful weather and scenery, quaint villages and towns with a long history in tourism. Despite having been part of the tourist industry for years, it hadn't lost it's soul and still felt very much authentic while being more than capable of dealing with tourists.
One of the meals that was on most of the specials boards was a dish called Gemista (stuffed tomatoes).
I absolutely adore tomatoes, so this was right up my street. It consisted of big beef tomatoes stuffed with paella or risotto type grains cooked in a rich, salty tomato sauce. It tasted so good!
They also had lots and lots of feta on the menu, so in this recipe I added some crumbled feta on top, to add extra richness and saltiness. You may also notice a stuffed pepper in the photographs - it works just as well with green and peppers.
This recipe makes enough rice for around 6 tomatoes, but you don't have to make that many.
In fact I kept the leftover rice for work the next day and it was epic!
Gemista - Greek Stuffed Tomatoes
Ingredients
- 200 g 1 Cup risotto or paella rice
- 475 ml 2 cups water
- 1 vegetable stock cube
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon of thyme preferably fresh
- 1 teaspoon oregano preferably fresh
- generous pinch of salt and pepper
- 6 large beef tomatoes or peppers
- 30 g ground pistachios
- 200 g tinned tomatoes
- 1 small chunk of feta to crumble over- to your taste
Instructions
- First hollow out your vegetables, this is straightforward for the peppers. For the tomatoes I found it easiest to get a sharp knife and cut the top off, then cut 4 lines in crosses (like a star) into the seeds. I then cut a v shape down into the seeds to cut them out and hollowed out the rest with a large spoon. Keep the inside of the tomatoes to use for the rice.
- Pre-heat the oven to 175 C
- In a deep frying pan add the rice and olive oil and heat gently for a minute or so.
- Add the water (cold) along with the tinned tomatoes, insides of the tomatoes, garlic, herbs, stock cube and seasoning.
- Bring to the boil and gently simmer until most of the liquid has been soaked up. The rice should be almost cooked and still a little wet.
- Add the pistachios and mix well.
- Spoon the mixture into the tomatoes or peppers, sprinkle with crumbly feta, place the tops back on and place in the oven for 30-40 minutes or until they look soft.
- Keep any leftover rice for lunch the next day.
If you're looking for more Greek inspired recipes. Some of my fellow bloggers have great ideas for you:
Chilli and herb baked feta cheese from Recipes From A Pantry.
Olive, garlic and halloumi spelt bread (Eliopsomi) from Tin and Thyme
Pastitsio (Greek macaroni pie) from Elizabeths Kitchen Diary
Oh boy, those tomatoes look good. So does all that sunshine and wonderful scenery. I've wanted to go to Kefealonia ever since reading Captain Corelli's Mandoline - me and pretty much every one else I expect š
These stuffed tomatoes look so delicious and on reading the ingredients I know everyone here would love this dish, thanks for sharing:-)
I've never had stuffed tomatoes before, but these look delicious. What a great idea!
Oh those pictures of Kefalonia make me want to pack up and head off on holiday. I will make it there one day.
I have never had stuffed tomatoes, but this sounds and looks wonderful! I really want to go to Greece someday as I can speak Greek but have never been there x