This recipe is a new twist on one in The Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook. Dip into the Dijon sauce with care—it’s a little on the hot side. We like to put a small dollop of roasted red pepper vinaigrette on each tomato slice.

　　

Ingredients

serves 6

　　3 or 4 large firm green tomatoes

　　Salt

　　2 cups vegetable or peanut oil for deep-frying

　　1 cup buttermilk

　　2 cups self-rising flour

　　Dijon Pepper Dippin’ Sauce (recipe follows)

　　

Dijon Pepper Dippin’ Sauce

1 cup Dijon mustard

　　1/2 cup mayonnaise

　　2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar1

　　1 tablespoon white pepper

　　4 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper

　　1/2 cup vegetable oil

　　1 tablespoon red pepper flakes

　　1 tablespoon whole peppercorns

　　(makes 2 cups)

　　

Step 1

Slice the tomatoes 1/4 inch thick. Lay them out in a shallow baking pan and sprinkle with salt. Place the tomato slices in a colander and allow time for the salt to pull the water out of the tomatoes (30 minutes should do it).

　　

Step 2

In a skillet heat the oil for deep-frying over medium-high heat.

　　

Step 3

Dip the tomatoes into buttermilk, then dredge them in flour. Deep-fry until golden brown.

　　

Dijon Pepper Dippin’ Sauce

Step 4

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the mustard, mayonnaise, balsamic vinegar, white pepper, and 1 tablespoon of the black pepper, and beat until just blended; set aside.

　　

Step 5

In a small saucepan combine the oil, the remaining 3 tablespoons of black pepper, the red pepper flakes, and the whole peppercorns. Heat the oil until hot, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes. Allow to cool, then strain. With the food processor running, drizzle the oil into the mayonnaise mixture. Continue processing for 2 minutes.

　　The Lady & Sons, Too! by Paula Deen. © 2001 by Paula H. Deen. Published by Random House. All Rights Reserved.Paula H. Deen was born and raised in Albany, Georgia. She later moved to Savannah, where she and her two sons, Bobby and Jamie, started the Bag Lady catering company. The business took off and evolved into The Lady & Sons Restaurant, which is located in Savannah’s historic district and specializes in Southern cooking. Paula is the host of Food Network’s Paula’s Home Cooking and is a regular guest on QVC, where her cookbooks are one of the newtowrk’s biggest sellers.