Maybe one of the best salads in the whole world is a Frozen Tomato Salad. It’s hard to describe, and once you read the ingredients you may seriously doubt this, but when all is said and done and you’ve given it a try, you’ll be craving this dish for days. It’s possible that this salad is just a Nashville thing. Versions are served in a few spots and local kitchens here and there. There are at least three recipes that I know of that claim to be the real deal. The first published recipe was probably the one in Sadie LeSueur’s cookbook, Recipes, Party Plans, and Garnishes - a collector’s item indeed if you can find one. The recipe is very good, but I like the one I use better. Belle Meade Country Club makes a Frozen Tomato Salad – it’s quite red and no one is offering up that recipe. Julia Reed, one of my favorite writers, published a version of that particular salad in the New York Times about ten years ago. The Nashville Seasons Cookbook has one – but it’s just not right (in my opinion). That brings us to this recipe for Frozen Tomato Salad. At a recent ladies lunch all the guests enjoyed a serving of Frozen Tomato Salad along with several other salad presentations. Since the chef and I love to confer on recipes, we were quite pleased to discover that we share the same two “secret Ingredients”. Hold on to your hats because these are a doozy – tomato soup and crushed pineapple. This is all rounded out with mayonnaise, cream, cream cheese, and smidge of ketchup. It is imperative that you taste this before judging. It’s a little sweet, a little tangy (hot sauce) a lot creamy for obvious reasons. It’s just the perfect touch on a salad plate. I have always served it scooped out like an ice cream ball on a lettuce leaf, but I’m totally reforming the presentation based on the genius idea from that lunch, to freeze individual portions in paper muffin cups and just peel the muffin cups off to serve. Here again, don’t judge – but a tiny dollop of mayonnaise is exactly what you need for presentation. Frozen Tomato Salad may not be the most healthful salad dish ever invented – let’s face facts – it is not, but unless you stand in front of your freezer gobbling up big spoonfuls you will be okay with a reasonable portion. Plus, who would stand in front of their freezer eating this stuff when no one is looking, I have absolutely no idea…
For those of you who asked for the recipe – here it is. For those of you who have never tried it you’ll be so happy when you do, and for anyone out there turning up your nose – well sadly, you just don’t know what you are missing. Make this soon! Enjoy!
Ingredients
3 cans of Campbell’s Tomato Soup
1 cup mayonnaise (Hellmann’s is my choice)
1 cup half & half cream
12 oz cream cheese
½ cup ketchup
1 Tbsp grated onion
20 oz can crushed pineapple, undrained
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
3 - 4 drops Tabasco
Directions
Thoroughly combine soup, mayonnaise, half & half, cream cheese, onion, and ketchup in a mixer or food processor.
Add pineapple and blend to combine. (I like to leave pineapple pieces in the salad, if you don’t care for that, blend it in with a food processor or blender.)
Add Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco and taste for seasoning. *
Line muffin tins with paper muffin cups.
Pour salad into cups and freeze at least 6 hours or until solid.
Serve on lettuce leaves with a dollop of mayonnaise if desired.
Makes about 30 servings.
Individual servings may be kept well sealed in the freezer for at least a week.
*You may choose to add red food coloring for more of a “tomato” color.
