Labne is a healthy, tangy Middle Eastern yogurt that is low in lactose and rich in beneficial bacteria. You can find it at Middle Eastern bakeries or grocery stores or shops like Whole Foods.
Tomato Labne Pie is a great summer pie. It is a light and refreshing meal for hot summer evenings. It also makes a nice luncheon entrée as well as a delicious brunch offering. Paired with a spring salad with vinaigrette dressing, diners will leave the table feeling refreshed but not stuffed.
Use fresh heirloom tomatoes for this dish. Their fresh juicy sweetness will really enhance the overall flavor. Cassava flour is the flour I like to use for the crust. It's gluten free and nut- free, but be warned, cassava flour is dusty, and much like any other root vegetable, it is high in carbs. To make this recipe totally gluten free, substitute the whole wheat flour with 1 1/4 cup garbanzo bean flour, and make sure you reduce the cassava flour to 1/2 cup.
Ingredients:
1/2 Cup Whole Wheat flour
1 cup Cassava flour
1 tablespoon Nigella seeds
1/2 teaspoon salt
100 grams unsalted butter
3/4 cup Labne
2 heirloom tomatoes
Yield: one 9- inch Pie
Prep time: 1 hour
Cook time: 20 min
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Grease a round 9 inch loose- based tart tin.
In a food processor, pulse the flours with salt.
Add the butter a little at a time, and pulse with each addition.
Get a cup of iced water ready. Add a tablespoon at a time to the dry ingredients, until the dry ingredients come together and make a nice dough.
Place the dough in a mixing bowl. Add the seeds. Mix well.
Press the dough into the the pie tin. Bake for 20 min.
Remove crust from the oven and let cool for 30 min.
Spoon the Labne into the cooled pie crust.
Slice the tomatoes and arrange on top of the Labne.
Sprinkle with basil, or dried mint.
Tomato Labne Pie can be served as a main course with a nice green salad, or with a grilled barbecue chicken.