Stuffed Tomatoes

• 12 medium ripe but firm tomatoes
• 1 cup olive oil
• 3 cups chopped onions
• 1 fennel bulb, trimmed and finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon fennel seed, preferably freshly ground or crushed in a mortar
• 1 cup arborio rice
• 1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 cup chopped fresh dill
• 12 cup chopped of fresh mint
• 1 12 teaspoons salt, plus more to taste
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 medium potato, scrubbed,halved crosswise and each half quartered

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Cut off the top 1/2 inch of each tomato; set aside the tops.
3. Using a grapefruit spoon, very carefully remove as much pulp as possible from each tomato, without piercing the skin.
4. Chop the pulp.
5. Measure out 2 1/2 cups.
6. Discard the rest.
7. In a large skillet, heat 2/3 cup of the oil and saute the onions and fennel bulb over medium heatfor 5 minutes, or until soft.
8. Add the fennel seeds and rice and saute, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes.
9. Add 2 cups of the tomato pulp, reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes more.
10. Stir in the parsley, dill, and mint and cook for 2 minutes more.
11. Remove from the heat and add the salt and plenty of pepper.
12. Stuff the tomatoes with the rice mixture, leaving a little room for the stuffing to expand, and cover with the tomato tops.
13. Place the tomatoes in a large 13x9 inch baking dish and arrange the potato pieces in the gaps between the tomatoes.
14. Pour the remaining 1/2 cup tomato pulp over everything and drizzle the tomatoes with the remaining 12 cup oil.
15. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.
16. Bake for 1 hour, or until the rice is tender (life the cover of a tomato and check).
17. Turn off the oven and let stand in the over for 10 minutes, then let cool to room temperature.

tomatoes, olive oil, onions, fennel bulb, fennel, arborio rice, parsley, dill, mint, salt, freshly ground black pepper, potato

Taken from www.food.com/recipe/stuffed-tomatoes-15545 (may not work)