Fried Green Tomatoes

The nights are getting really cold now. Our last tomato plant, a patio tomato in a large nursery pot growing on-- wait for it-- the patio, had some tomatoes left on it that hubby picked. The beams across the pergola top of the patio cover kept it from getting zapped by the frosts we've had lately, but we decided that the tomatoes that hadn't ripened yet were going to become fried green tomatoes.

I sliced them about 1/4 inch thick, sprinkled them with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, lightly dredged them in flour, dipped them in a beaten egg, then in cornmeal and sauteed them in a little canola oil. They were crispy on the outside, tender in the middle. And for some reason I'm not aware of, they had a slight lemony taste, which contrasted nicely with the crispy/salty cornmeal crust. I served them with chicken legs that had been rubbed with a garlic, olive oil, and rosemary mixture and baked. A great combination! Next time I think I'll add a little bit of paprika to the cornmeal and use ranch dressing as a dip.