Last week I visited a local farm store on RCR 3410. I was there about a tractor, but also purchased 5 lbs. of beautifully ripened red tomatoes. They were grown locally in a greenhouse. My own tomatoes won’t be producing soon and I just couldn’t resist those.

The tomatoes were meaty and sweet – perhaps they seemed better than usual because it’s been so long (November?) since I had a real naturally vine-ripened tomato. David and I ate tomatoes every day of the week in salads and sandwiches. It also encouraged me to get my own tomato seedlings into the ground. I planted 52 tomato plants over the weekend. I like tomatoes, okay?

I started the plants from seeds, planting Big Boy, Roma, San Marzano and Rutgers. I will buy a couple of cherry and yellow pear tomato plants soon – just to round out the offering. I’m looking forward to transplanting the rest of my seedlings – eggplant, tomatillo, melon, okra and pepper plants.

With the last two tomatoes and my own home-grown asparagus, I pulled together a savory quiche for Sunday night’s dinner. It wasn’t a quickly pulled together meal, but David agreed it was worth the wait.

Asparagus, Tomato and Bacon Quiche
6 slices bacon
1 onion, sliced
1 bunch asparagus spears, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 c. Greek yogurt
4 eggs
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 c. flour
1 Tbsp. Fat-free Half-and-Half
1 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. salt
6 dashes of Louisiana Hot Sauce
2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
2 medium-sized tomatoes
1 pie shell

On the stove top, cook bacon until crisp. Remove the bacon and drain on a paper towel-lined plate. Saute onion and asparagus stems in about 1 Tbsp. of the bacon grease. Save the asparagus tops to add to the quiche later. They are tender and do not need to be pre-cooked.

In a blender or food processor, combine the yogurt, eggs, Parmesan cheese, flour, milk, onion and garlic powder, salt and hot sauce until smooth.

Chop the bacon into smaller pieces and add to the onion and asparagus stems. Scoop that mixture into the bottom of the pie shell. Sprinkle cheddar cheese (I used white and orange cheddar) over the vegetables and pour the yogurt-egg mixture into the shell.

Slice tomatoes thinly, about 1/4 inch thick. Gently dip one side into the yogurt egg mixture and flip them over and lay on top. You want them to be thinly coated. Place the quiche on a sheet pan and cook in a 350-degree oven for 45 minutes or until set. I ended up cooking for a total of 55 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Quick Pie Crust
2/3 c. shortening, really cold
2 c. flour
1 pinch salt
6-7 Tbsp. icy-cold water

Using a pastry cutter – or fork tines – cut the shortening, flour and salt until pea-sized crumbles form.

Add the water 2 Tbsp. at a time and continue to work the dough. I usually only add 6 Tbsp. and by then the dough can be squeezed into a ball. Wrap that ball in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 30 minutes before using.

Really cold shortening and icy-cold water are the keys to getting a light and flaky crust.