Recipe courtesy of Valerie Vanderpool
Tomato Bon Bons
- Level: Intermediate
- Yield: 24 pieces
-
- Nutritional Analysis
- Per Serving
- Serving Size
- 1 of 24 servings
- Calories
- 530
- Total Fat
- 49
- Saturated Fat
- 6
- Carbohydrates
- 15
- Dietary Fiber
- 2
- Sugar
- 5
- Protein
- 9
- Cholesterol
- 41
- Sodium
- 517
- Total: 50 min
- Prep: 45 min
- Cook: 5 min
Ingredients
1/2 seedless cucumber, minced
24 grape tomatoes, cored
1 ounce Asiago cheese, cut into 24 small cubes
3 eggs
1 pound ground sausage
1 cup flour
Breading, recipe follows
4 cups vegetable oil
1 cup fresh tomato salsa
1 cup ranch dressing
Breading:
1 cup shredded Asiago cheese
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon granulated garlic
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Dash cayenne pepper
Directions
- Stuff each of the tomatoes with a cube of Asiago cheese. Beat 1 egg in a medium bowl. Mix the sausage in until the egg is completely incorporated. Lay a 12 by 12-inch piece of plastic wrap on your workspace. Break off about 3/4 of an ounce of the sausage mixture and make a small pancake in the palm of your hand. Put the stuffed tomato in the middle of the pancake and wrap the sausage around it, rolling it in your palms to create a meatball, making sure the entire tomato is covered with the sausage mixture. Set it on the plastic wrap and continue with the remaining tomatoes.
- Beat the 2 remaining eggs in a small bowl. Put the flour and Breading in separate small bowls. To set up your breading station, place the 3 bowls in this order: flour, egg, and breading mixture. Lay another 12 by 12-inch piece of plastic wrap on your work space. With one hand (the wet hand), place a bon bon into the flour. With the other hand (the dry hand), roll it around gently until it is lightly coated. Pick it up and place it into the egg bowl. With your wet hand, roll it around gently until it is lightly coated with the egg. Place it into the breading bowl. With your dry hand, sprinkle some Breading over the bon bon, and then begin to gently roll it around to coat it. Place it on the clean piece of plastic wrap. Continue until all of the bon bons have been breaded. If needed, you can roll the bon bons around gently in your clean dry hands to ensure that they're perfectly round. Let sit while the oil is heating.
- Using a candy thermometer, heat the oil to 350 degrees F in a pan that is deep enough that the bon bons will be completely submerged. Fry the bon bons 6 at a time until they are completely golden, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain on paper towels. (The bon bons can be made ahead and warmed on a sheet pan in a 325 degree F oven for 5 to 7 minutes before serving.)
- Process the salsa and ranch dressing in a small food processor for about 30 seconds. Pour into a bowl and stir in the cucumber. Serve with the bon bons.
Breading:
- Mix all the ingredients well.