This Tomato Pie makes a hearty summer meal! It’s perfect for any meal of the day, and the leftovers will keep all week long. This recipe is also a great budget-friendly way to use up some tomatoes, and it’s a little more unique than a quiche! The subtle sweetness from the puff pastry crust balances out the creamy, cheesy, tangy tomato filling in the most delicious way—I just love a homemade savory pie!
Tomatoes are a special ingredient in my family; my grandfather’s family brought over their own precious heirloom tomato seeds when they immigrated to the United States. My grandparents and, later, my mom and dad have grown those tomatoes in their garden ever since. So, as a kid, I got to help them germinate the seeds, plant, weed, water, and pick them! I haven’t started my own garden on my farm here in Tennessee yet, but when I do, we’ll be growing them, too.
I can’t wait to make this tomato pie recipe with my homegrown tomatoes, but until then, I happily rely on my local farmer’s market to get my fix. Tomato season is the best season!
What is Tomato Pie?
When I say tomato pie, I’m referring to the Southern staple made with fresh tomatoes and a tangy mayonnaise-cheese filling, baked in a flaky pastry crust. It’s comparable to a quiche and is not to be confused with the Sicilian tomato pie, which is a cheeseless pizza-like dish. For this recipe, I use a buttery puff pastry sheet rather than a deep-dish pastry crust, which I fold over the filling to create a rustic, free-form style pie—the tomatoes peeping through the cracks look so pretty! Each bite is perfectly layered with an equal amount of tangy, creamy filling and juicy, ripe tomatoes.
Ingredients for Tomato Pie
Here’s what you’ll need to make the best tomato pie recipe ever:
- Tomatoes: I recommend using Roma tomatoes because they’re so budget-friendly, but really, any fresh, ripe tomatoes will work. Bonus points if they’re homegrown!
- Puff Pastry: A pre-made puff pastry sheet makes this recipe super quick and easy. I used the Pepperidge Farm brand I found at my local Walmart.
- Seasonings: Salt, freshly cracked black pepper, and cayenne pepper season the pie perfectly.
- Olive Oil: I roast the tomato slices before adding them to the pie to remove some moisture and enhance their flavor. Drizzling with a little olive oil beforehand helps them roast evenly and adds to their depth of flavor.
- Mayonnaise: Adds creaminess and tang to the filling.
- Cheese: A mixture of shredded cheddar, Parmesan, and ricotta cheese is a must for this recipe!
- Egg: Helps to bind the filling and give it structure and the egg wash gives the top a beautiful sheen and helps keep the edges from burning.
- Garlic: Fresh minced garlic adds a yummy, savory flavor to the pie.
- Basil: This is optional, but fresh basil is a delicious addition to the filling.
What Else Can I Add?
The fresh flavors make it easy to customize this recipe for tomato pie with anything else you have on hand. Here are a few other possible additions:
- Freshly grated ginger and a dusting of brown sugar (It sounds wild, but you can trust me!)
- Caramelized onions
- Sliced chives
- Sauteed mushrooms
Storage Instructions
This homemade tomato pie makes fantastic leftovers! Store them in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days. You can enjoy this pie cold or hot, using the oven to reheat it if desired. While this pie can be frozen, I don’t really recommend it because the mayo filling may separate, and tomatoes can become mushy when thawed.
Tomato Pie
Servings 8 slices, 1 slice per personIngredients
- 6 roma tomatoes* ($1.26)
- 1 puff pastry sheet ($3.12)
- ½ tsp salt, divided ($0.01)
- 1 tsp olive oil ($0.07)
- ½ cup mayonnaise ($0.79)
- ½ cup ricotta cheese ($0.65)
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese ($1.97)
- ¼ cup shredded parmesan cheese ($1.35)
- 2 large eggs, divided ($0.44)
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper ($0.06)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced ($0.10)
- ¼ tsp freshly cracked black pepper ($0.04)
- 2 Tbsp fresh minced basil (optional) ($0.89)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375°F and slice 6 Roma tomatoes into ¼-inch thick slices.
- Sprinkle tomatoes with 1/8 tsp of salt and a drizzle of olive oil and roast on a parchment-lined baking sheet for 20 minutes until wilted but not browned. The goal is to concentrate the flavors and get a little bit of the moisture out.
- Whisk together the mayonnaise and ricotta cheese. Set aside.
- Add shredded cheddar cheese, shredded Parmesan cheese, 1 egg, cayenne pepper, minced garlic cloves, black pepper, the remaining salt, and fresh minced basil (if using) to the bowl with the mayo and ricotta cheese. Mix until well combined.
- Roll out puff pastry between 2 sheets of parchment paper to about 10×10”. Remove parchment paper and drape over glass pie pan.
- Fill bottom with half of the cheese mixture, then alternate tomatoes and cheese mixture until both are used up (I had 2 layers of each). Finish with the last of your sliced tomatoes on top.
- Fold the corners of the puff pastry sheet over the top of the pie. You don't have to make the crust look perfectly symmetrical. I think it adds to the rustic appeal of this super easy savory tomato pie.
- In a small bowl, gently scramble the egg to create an egg wash. Brush the egg wash all over the visible parts of the puff pastry crust. This will help give it a golden color and create a nice shine.
- Turn the temperature of your oven up to 400°F. Once preheated at the higher temperature, bake for 20-25 min or until crust is puffy and golden. Let cool for 10 min before cutting.**
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Notes
Nutrition
how to make Tomato Pie – step by step photos
Preheat your oven to 375°F and slice 6 Roma tomatoes into ¼-inch thick slices.
Sprinkle tomatoes with 1/8 tsp of salt and a drizzle of olive oil and roast on a parchment-lined baking sheet for 20 minutes until wilted but not browned. The goal is to concentrate the flavors and get a little bit of the moisture out.
Whisk together 1/2 cup of mayonnaise and 1/2 cup of ricotta cheese. Set aside.
Add 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese, ¼ cup of shredded Parmesan cheese, 1 large egg, ¼ tsp of cayenne pepper, 2 minced garlic cloves, ¼ tsp black pepper, the remaining salt, and 2 Tbsp of fresh minced basil (if using) to the bowl with the mayo and ricotta cheese. Mix until well combined.
Roll out puff pastry between 2 sheets of parchment paper to about 10×10”. Remove parchment paper and drape over glass pie pan.
Fill bottom with half of the cheese mixture.
Then, alternate cheese mixture and sliced tomatoes.
Repeat until the tomatoes and cheese mixture are both used up. (I had 2 layers of each.)
Finish with the last of your sliced tomatoes on top.
Fold the corners of the puff pastry sheet over the top of the pie. You don’t have to make the crust look perfectly symmetrical. I think it adds to the rustic appeal of this super easy savory tomato pie.
In a small bowl, gently scramble the egg to create an egg wash. Brush the egg wash all over the visible parts of the puff pastry crust. This will help give it a golden color and create a nice shine.
Turn the temperature of your oven up to 400. Bake for 20-25 min or until crust is puffy and golden. Let cool for 10 min before cutting.
This southern tomato pie recipe is the perfect main meal, side dish, or snack for any occasion!
Can this be made and refrigerated overnight then reheated??
Absolutely, the leftovers are amazing!
I want to make this, but I don’t have a 3 quart glass pie dish. I do have a 2 quart 8×8 glass square dish (right material, probably too small), a 9×13 3 quart glass dish (right material and capacity, but rectangular shape might mean puff pastry crust doesn’t fit right), and an oven safe 3.5 quart frying pan (right shape and almost right capacity, but metal instead of glass). Could I get your thoughts on which one to use and if/how I’d need to adjust for the change?
I would go with the 9×13 3 quart glass dish. The best part about this puff pastry crust is (as you can see in my photos) it’s meant to be rustic and no 2 pies will look exactly alike. You can roll your dough out a little if you need to, but it’s really more of a one crust pie anyway! Enjoy.
This seems interesting. How big is the pie dish that you use?
It’s a 3-quart glass pie dish! 9-inches
Very good, very rich. It had a definite mild kick to me, might add paprika next time and for us cut back a bit on the minced garlic as I’ve got a good bit of garlic aftertaste. I could see customizing this with maybe some bacon next time or going more Italian by adding in some Italian seasoning and diced pepperoni or other Italian meat. I baked it for more like 30 min and let it cool for 20, didn’t really set up, but I will be interested to see how it does after a night in the fridge. Didn’t bother us at all to eat it out of bowls!
Mine also failed to fully set when made as written, but it sure was delicious. I used full-fat ricotta, a brick of cheddar I shredded myself, pre-shredded parmesean, and regular mayo. I let it cool for 15+ minutes before slicing. I’m confident my tomatoes were not too juicy. Next time I will reserve a tablespoon of egg for the wash and put the rest in with the filling and see if that helps. Five stars for flavor!!
Mine didn’t set either, will try your plan for the egg next time. I’m also wondering if it would help to deseed the tomatoes and/or let the ricotta drain a bit, since evidently some are drier than others. I used whole milk Galbani brand ricotta, preshredded parmesan and cheddar, regular mayo (Duke’s), baked it for roughly 30 min and let it cool for about 20 min.
I have so many fresh grown tomatoes, I have made this twice in the last 2 weeks. So good!!!!
Can’t wait to make this!! In reading the instructions, when putting puff pastry in the pie dish, does the dish need to be lightly greased or prepared in any way?
Hi, Shelley. You shouldn’t have to, since the puff pastry has so much butter, but a spray if you’re nervous about it wouldn’t hurt. :)
This was so good I’m going to end up eating the whole thing in one day!😆 Thank you! I had red and gold tomatoes from a friend’s garden and ended up with three layers each of cheese/tomatoes and baked for about ten minutes longer. I accidentally put both eggs in the cheese mixture and maybe that helped set it. Used a third for the wash. My crust was nicely done on the bottom too. Just a perfect and flavorful way to use tomatoes!
Hey Linda, Yum! I’m so glad you enjoyed.
Was really looking forward to this, but after following the recipe, pie was just a big goopy mess. Looked great until I cut into it. Not sure if the tomatoes were too juicy, but I had to eat it out of a bowl. Still tasted good, but was definitely not the last pic you posted.
Hey Adam, I’m sorry yours didn’t turn out right. Did you let it cool before cutting into it? If you forgot to let it cool, you would definitely have a juicy pie! Or perhaps your tomato slices may have still been too juicy or maybe cut too thick? I’m glad you enjoyed the flavors.
Great recipe advise from a “non cooker…”
So glad you enjoyed it!
This looks amazing and I’m heading to the Farmers Market to get some tomatoes to make this! Thanks for a wonderful variation of tomato pie!!
Farmers Market trips are the best trips! I hope you enjoy.
Recipe looks great, any suggested replacement for mayonnaise that we are not fans of?
Thanks
You could substitute plain greek yogurt.
Beautiful, simple, and absolutely delicious! Thanks for this winning idea to use up the ripe tomatoes I scored at the farmers’ market on Monday.
You’re welcome! Thanks, Jan. I hope you love it.
We did! We Southerners LOVE tomato pie, tomato sandwiches (although mine are BLT, not just tomato, mayo, and white bread), etc. I have a couple of pie recipes, but we adored this one and using store bought puff pastry was both a timesaver and delicious way to put the pie together. It was just as beautiful to look at as to taste. We served it as part of an extended family dinner with a big salad (including blueberries, sliced strawberries, and diced apple) and garlic bread–no leftovers at all. Dessert was those yummy lime key lime bars you posted last week. I’ll do this recipe at least once more before frost. Thanks for posting this recipe!
This makes me so happy to read! Thanks, Jan!
Used fresh cherry tomatoes from our garden (cooked them down for about 40 min and scooped them out of the juice) and it was amazing! One quick clarification – the recipe calls for one egg, but actually uses 2 (one in the filling, and one beaten and brushed on top of the crust)
Corrected, thanks for catching that, Tisha! So glad you enjoyed the recipe.
This looks amazing! But just to clarify – the ingredients call for one egg, but a second one is required for the egg wash before baking?
Thanks for catching that, Jennifer! Fixed it!