Horseradish Cherry Tomatoes

Attending a football viewing party and need an easy, tasty and unique munchie to share with the group?  Why not try these Horseradish stuffed Cherry Tomatoes.  I saw these in a Bon Appetit spread on "Tomato Starters" and immediately knew I had to try them!









I used:

Heirloom Cherry Tomatoes
Mayonnaise
Prepared Horseradish
Chives

As you'll see from the photo, 3 out of 4 ingredients came directly from Trader Joe's.

I made these on Labor Day Weekend - and had 2 parties to attend.  One was a BBQ on Sunday, and the other was a pool party on Labor Day Monday.  I opted to take these tasty treats to both parties.

The process is pretty simple, but I'm going to give a few pointers that I figured out between the first batch and the second batch.  If you follow the pointers, perhaps you can avoid some of the problems that I ran into on the first batch.  Use a small sharp knife to core the cherry tomatoes - then scoop out the centers.  This sounded a lot easier than it turned out to be - but it is do-able!    I tended to core out the top, where the stem would have met the tomato - but when they were filled, they wouldn't necessarily stand upright.  Here's a great hint that Brian figured out - place the tomato on a plate, and whatever end it stands up on, core out the opposite end.

Meanwhile, mix two parts mayo to one part horseradish - I used three big tablespoon scoops of mayo and one and a half big tablespoon scoops of horseradish.  Spoon the blended mix into the tomato cavities.  Top with chopped chives, and chill in the fridge until ready to serve.

Here's a hint on the horseradish - I used the Trader Joe's fresh horseradish, which is chunky with grates of horseradish and juicy with liquid.  The water in the horseradish thinned down the mayo and made my filling a bit runny.  The second batch I made I squeezed the liquid out of the horseradish, and while the final filling was less juicy, I also thought it lacked some of the horseradish deliciousness.   Next time  (and I WILL make these again!) I would try using the creamed horseradish that is more the consistency of mayo right out of the jar.

IF you make these for a UTAH football party, I suggest just using the red cherry tomatoes - so you'll be color-appropriate.