Olive and Goat Cheese Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes

Olive and goat cheese stuffed cherry tomatoes.

These little stuffed tomatoes were a real hit at our weekend cookout. They’re cute to look at, and make a great pop-in-your-mouth appetizer. Scooping out the insides of cherry tomatoes can be a little tricky, and time consuming, but well worth the effort. The best tool for the job – I think – is a 1/4 teaspoon measuring spoon. If using the small tomatoes is too labor intensive, then try using grape tomatoes or the Campari variety for an appetizer that is 2-3 bites in size.

These tomatoes provide bright spots of color on a tray of appetizers, or also included on a cold salad plate. For the diet conscious, its reassuring to know that each tomato is only 14 calories, with 1 g. fat, and 1 g. carbohydrate, but 43 mg. potassium, ( a good thing) and 21 mg. sodium, ( not great, but not too bad). So these can be enjoyed pretty much guilt-free. I hope you like them and will give them a try real soon.

OLIVE AND GOAT CHEESE STUFFED CHERRY TOMATOES

Yield: Makes 2 dozen

Ingredients:

Hollow out small tomatoes, fill with a goat cheese and olive mixture.

24 cherry tomatoes, about 1 pint.
3 ounces goat cheese
2 Tablespoons finely chopped olives. I used Calamata olives, but green olives may also be used.
1 Tablespoon low-fat milk
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
2 tsp. finely chopped parsley

1. Slice about 1/4 inch off the top of each tomato. If necessary, trim a sliver off the bottom so the tomato sits flat. Gently scoop out the seeds with a small spoon or the tip of a small knife.

2. Mash the goat cheese, olives, milk and pepper in a small bowl until well combined. Fill each hollowed tomato with a generous 1 teaspoon of the cheese mixture. Sprinkle with some of the chopped parsley and more pepper, if desired.