Attack of the tomatoes

Vine-ripened tomatoes are the jewels of the summer. Wednesday's Life cover will be all about these juicy treasures.

Last night, I made spinach-and-ricotta stuffed tomatoes using a recipe adapted from The Silver Palate cookbook. That was dinner - along with a side of baby arugula leaves lightly dressed with lemon juice and extra-virgin olive oil. It's a nice vegetarian option.

Spinach-and-ricotta stuffed tomatoes

4 ripe, red tomatoes, best you can find
Salt
2 tablespoons best quality olive oil
1/2 cup chopped yellow onions
10 ounces frozen, chopped spinach, defrosted, drained and squeezed dry
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Grated nutmeg to taste
15-ounce container of ricotta cheese
1 egg yolk
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

Wash and dry tomatoes and cut off tops. With the handle end of a small spoon, scrape out the seeds and partitions, being careful not to pierce the sides of the tomatoes. Salt the cavities and set tomatoes upside down on a paper towel to drain.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium-low heat, add the onions and cook until tender and lightly colored.

Squeeze the liquid out of the spinach and add it to the skillet. Combine the onions and spinach thoroughly and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Do not let mixture scorch. Remove from heat.

Preheat oven to 350. Blend the ricotta and egg yolk together in a mixing bowl. Add the spinach mixture, the pine nuts, half of the cheese and the basil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Blot the tomatoes cavities with a paper towl and spoon the spinach mixture evenly in each of the four tomatoes. Top each with the remaining cheese.

Arrange in a shallow baking dish and set in the upper third of the oven. Bake until the tops are well-browned and the filling is hot and bubbly, about 20 to 25 minutes. Serve immediately. Makes 4 portions.