Stuffed Tomato Appetizers

We've been spoiled lately with some early spring- and summerlike weather. It already has me looking forward to summer produce. Although garden tomatoes are months away from being available, grocery stores stock plenty of tomatoes year round. These two recipes for stuffed tomatoes are simple and tasty. The first ones are stuffed with Mike's scrumptious hummus. The second ones are stuffed with a yummy couscous mixture.

Tomatoes Stuffed with Hummus

Ingredients

• 1 to 1 1/2 pounds pearl tomatoes
• about 2 cups Mike's hummus
• fresh chopped parsley, for garnish

Directions

1. Slice the tomatoes in half, and scoop out and discard the seeds (or reserve for other use). If the insides of the tomatoes have too much liquid, you may need to pat them dry.
2. Spoon some hummus in each tomato half.
3. Sprinkle a bit of parsley over the hummus, and serve chilled.

Tomatoes Stuffed with Couscous

Ingredients

• 1 to 1 1/2 pounds pearl tomatoes
• about 2 cups cooked couscous (We used whole wheat couscous.)
• heaping 1/4 cup your favorite shredded cheese (We used dairy-free mozzarella substitute.)
• 2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted (We toasted them in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat. Shake the skillet often so they don't burn, and cook for a few minutes, or until they smell fragrant.)
• 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 small bunch fresh parsley, chopped

Directions

1. Slice the tomatoes in half, and scoop out and discard the seeds (or reserve for other use). If the insides of the tomatoes have too much liquid, you may need to pat them dry.
2. In a medium bowl, mix the couscous, cheese, pine nuts, seasonings, and parsley. Let the warmed couscous melt the cheese a bit.
3. Scoope the couscous mix into the tomato halves, and serve warmed or chilled.

She said

We made these for a family Christmas get-together, and they both turned out very well. We also made extra hummus to keep on the side and enjoy later. What's not to love about extra hummus?!

Pearl tomatoes are a little larger than the large cherry tomatoes from a salad bar, or up to about the size of a golf ball. Once cut in half, they are typically a good size for these appetizers.

He said

The color of these tomatoes on a bright Christmas morning was amazing. Paired with the green of the parsley, it was perfect for the theme. I don't want to dwell on what it takes to get these out of season, so instead let's look forward to all the fun things you'll have to do with your tomatoes this coming summer. I don't remember how quickly these appetizers went, but I couldn't stop eating them. Hmm, I bet a third variant stuffed with tuna salad, or a fourth stuffed with egg salad would be marvelous too.