Best Way To Serve Home Grown Tomatoes (At Least This Year)

Behold the open face tomato sandwich with ham and grilled cheese. With the absolute glut of tomatoes that have been produced this year and the high acidity of the tomatoes (all three varieties) I have been doing all kinds of things to determine how best to serve them. Of course they go into our regular gigantic lunch salads, but honestly whereas in years past I would serve them simply with some oil, salt, pepper, and basil, they've just been too acidic at least for my taste.

So I developed this concoction based on a recommendation I saw in Saveur magazine a number of years that exhorted just putting fresh tomatoes on bread with mayonnaise.  My mild alteration was first to get slices of a very good pumpernickel from a Swiss/German bakery in town (#3 even you I think will like their bread). I toast it lightly. I put a nice coating of mayonnaise on the bread. Then comes a double layer of tomatoes right off the vine. Salt, pepper, and fresh basil leaves from the garden are next. The a very thin layer of ham and a pretty good layer of cheese, in this case a young gouda.  Then under the broiler for three minutes.

PERFECTION!