When life gives you green tomatoes...

When life gives you lemons, you're supposed to make lemonade. But what do you do when life gives you green tomatoes?

Fry them, of course!

That's what happened last week. My neighbor called saying that she was going out of town and would I please do her a favor and pick up her farm share (weekly bundle of random and abundant vegetables), and by the way, could I eat it all too?

I call that a gift, not a favor. But, not to waste time with semantics, I assured her that, yes, I would gladly pick up her farm share and eat it all.

What an adventure! I headed out to the farmer's market with 1 6-year-old on a bike, 1 4-year old who insisted on walking, an empty stroller to accommodate someone/anyone/box of veggies, and an enthusiastic dog on a leash. We walked downhill to the market and meandered through it till we spotted the farm truck. The gentleman then proceeded to fill my neighbor's farm share box with a bit of everything in the back of his truck: peppers of various kinds, potatoes, garlic, shallots, corn, a cantaloupe, baby eggplants, basil, red tomatoes, yellow tomatoes, and GREEN tomatoes.

What to do with hard, green tomatoes?

Walking back home, uphill, I had plenty of time to think about it.

Then I remembered that quirky movie from the early 90's. And I fried them up.

How? Well, a different neighbor showed me how about 5 years ago, so I did my best to remember.

First, slice the tomatoes into 1/4 or 1/2 inch slices. Dip the slices in beaten egg. Then dredge them in cornmeal/flour/salt to coat. I took a shortcut and dipped them in dry cornmeal mix. Next, fry them in a hot pan with a generous about of olive oil.

Keep in mind, that when I say generous, I don't mean an inch of oil. I mean enough to cover the bottom of the pan and then maybe a dab more.

Finally, flip them like pancakes when they are good and brown and crispy. Fry on that side, adding a tad more oil if necessary. Flip them onto a plate when done. Fry in batches, like pancakes.

I guess I was feeling extra crusty that day, because I served them with breaded tofu.

This whole doing-a-favor-for-my-neighbor has me seriously considering purchasing a farm share next year.