Tomato and Cottage Cheese Salad
Updated August 25, 2024
Mark Weinberg for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.
- Total Time
- 20 minutes
- Prep Time
- 10 minutes
- Cook Time
- 10 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
1 ½ pounds heirloom tomatoes, sliced ½-inch thick
Flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon poppy seeds
½ teaspoon toasted white or black sesame seeds
½ teaspoon dried minced garlic
½ teaspoon dried minced onion
¼ small red onion, very thinly sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce (optional)
1 cup/8 ounces full-fat cottage cheese
⅓ cup coarsely chopped mixed tender herbs (such as chives, parsley and dill)
Grilled or toasted French bread or bagels, for serving
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
25 grams carbs; 10 milligrams cholesterol; 229 calories; 6 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 11 grams fat; 4 grams fiber; 636 milligrams sodium; 11 grams protein; 8 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Arrange tomato slices on a platter and season with ½ teaspoon salt.
- Step 2
Meanwhile, combine the poppy seeds, sesame seeds, dried garlic and dried onion in a small skillet. Cook over medium, shaking the pan occasionally, until the mixture is fragrant and golden brown, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl, stir in ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper and set aside.
- Step 3
Scatter the red onion on top of the tomato slices and drizzle with the olive oil and Worcestershire sauce, if using.
- Step 4
Using a spoon, dollop the cottage cheese on top.
- Step 5
Garnish with the herbs and the toasted spice blend; serve with bread.
Private Notes
Comments
Certified cottage cheese fiend here. I’m so thrilled to see this recipe - could it be that I am not alone in my appreciation for this polarizing ingredient? This dish is excellent as written, but should you be pressed for time, I think you could be forgiven for using store bought “everything bagel” seasoning in place of the spice mix. You could even toast it for a few seconds in the microwave. No judgment here.
My mom grew tomatoes. She would cut one beautiful tomato in eighths, part way through so the tomato opened up like a flower, then fill the center with a dollop of cottage cheese. Sprinkled with salt and pepper, it was a frequent summer salad. So fun to find an elevated version in NYT. Yummy!
Toast a couple of slices of good Jewish Rye bread. Slice tomatoes thick or thin, add sea salt and grinds of fresh pepper. Add a good olive oil to the tomatoes. Place the slices atop the toasted rye, spoon dollops of cottage cheese atop. Add basil, more salt and Espelette pepper. Eat over the sink. A mighty fine breakfast!!
use ricotta!!!!!!!!!
When I first came across this recipe, my immediate thought was, “I’m going to swap the cottage cheese for mozzarella.” But after reading through the comments, I decided to stay true to the recipe, and I’m so glad I did! The only change I made was using Trader Joe’s Everything But the Bagel Seasoning, which many others recommended. I still toasted it, though! The dish was fantastic: refreshing, comforting, and incredibly flavorful. It struck the perfect balance of light and satisfying.
Really delicious. I made a few modifications and thought I was screwing everything up, but it was still delicious: tomato-flowers instead of heirloom slices; bed of arugula; didn't toast the spice blend; added Persian cucumber slices to the plate, plus a side dollop of hummus for the bread. Next time I'll probably add the arugula, cucumber and hummus again, but I'll do the heirlooms. Can't get over how good this was.