Goliath tomatoes top off this chicken salad treat

Tomatoes from the garden make this summertime lunch a fresh choice.

Robin McDaniel

Robin McDaniel is a community columnist for Blount Today and writes the weekly column - In The Kitchen. Every week she prepares or collaborates on a recipe then cooks and photographs the dish for Blount Today. Robin must consider it a labor of love. You can certainly see the love and care she puts into In the Kitchen each week.

With tomatoes in full season, I turned to one of my favorite cooks, Paula Deen, for one of her recipes that would include tomatoes. And I knew just who to call when the recipe I chose called for six large tomatoes. My friend Ron Williams, who lives in Friendsville, had planted 93 tomato plants this year. No chance I was going to use anything but homegrown -- with Ron’s help.

Ron came through with six tomatoes that, fittingly, he said were the Goliath variety. I know there are hundreds of chicken salad recipes out there, but try this one. It works well with the tomatoes, as it is light and contains other summer vegetables like corn, bell peppers and onion. If you can get them fresh, your family will enjoy a real summer treat.

Paula Deen’s Tomatoes Stuffed with Chicken Salad

6 large tomatoes

2 cups cooked and cubed chicken

1/2 cup minced red bell pepper

1/2 cup corn, drained

1 1/2 tablespoons minced red onion

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon mayonaise

1 tsp. pepper

1/2 tsp. salt

Leaf lettuce or spinach leaves

Cut 1/2 inch off top of each tomato. Scoop out pulp from tomatoes. Turn tomatoes upside down on paper towels to drain. In medium bowl, combine chicken, bell pepper, corn and onion. In small bowl, whisk together olive oil and next 6 ingredients.

Pour over chicken, tossing gently to coat. Line tomatoes with leaf lettuce or spinach leaves. Spoon chicken salad evenly into tomatoes. Refrigerate or serve immediately.