12    Firm, ripe tomatoes
Salt
Granulated sugar
3 tb Olive oil or butter
1 md Onion; finely chopped
2    Garlic cloves; chopped
1/4 c  Chopped fresh parsley
1/2 lb Lean lamb or veal, ground
1/4 c  Dry white wine
1/4 c  Water
6 tb Raw long-grain white rice
Tomato juice (if necessary)
Freshly ground pepper
2    Sprigs fresh mint or basil
1 pn Grated nutmeg

Wash the tomatoes, then turn each stem-side down, and with a sharp knife
carefully cut the end now up to make an opening or “cap” being careful not
to detach the cap entirely. With a small spoon, carefully, without breaking
the outer skin of the tomatoes, scoop the pulp into a bowl. Place the
tomato shells in a baking-serving dish large enough to support them
touching. Sprinkle the inside of the shells with salt and sugar.
Meanwhile, prepare the stuffing. Heat the oil in a heavy skillet and add
the onions. Cook over moderate heat until soft and transparent, then add
the garlic and parsley, and blend. Add the meat, mashing with a fork, then
add the wine and water, cover, and simmer for a few minutes. Add the rice
and tomato pulp and stir. (Tomato juice may be added if necessary, since
the mixture should provide enough liquid for the rice to absorb.) Cover the
skillet and simmer about 7 minutes, then add salt, pepper, mint or basil,
and nutmeg. Taste for seasoning. Remove from heat, and fill the tomatoes
up about two-thirds of the way with the stuffing and liquid. Cover with
tomato caps, brush with oil. Bake in a moderate oven (350 F) until the rice
is tender (approximately 50 minutes to 1 hour), basting inside the tomatoes
with liquid released by them. Serve warm. Note: For Tomatoes stuffed with
Rice, use 1 1/4 cups raw long-grain white rice instead of the meat and rice
in the above recipe, eliminate the wine, and include with the other
seasonings a few tablespoons each of black raisins and 2 tablespoons pine
nuts, if desired. Rice in baked stuffed dishes takes much longer to cook
then over a burner. Stuffed green peppers, also popular in Greece, can be
made the same way with an entirely different flavor.