Grilled Green Tomato Tostadas with Black Beans and Avocado

Every week, Caroline Wright creates simple, civilized recipes for Food52 that feed four -- for under $20, in under 20 minutes.

Today: Move your green tomatoes out of the frying pan and onto the grill. 

Green tomatoes feel synonymous with a lilting Southern accent and are most often praised for their delivery of a crisp, fried coating rather than the fruit itself. (Don’t get me wrong, I have sung many such praises -- I am married to a man from Alabama.) 

The green tomatoes at the center of this dish -- a grilled tostada, topped with a tart black bean salad and served with creamy avocado -- shed their usual attire for summer and hit the grill instead. They are delicious and take a stance similar to that of a tomatillo: smoky from the grill, the toasted garlic, and the cumin.

Grilled Green Tomato Tostadas with Black Beans, Avocado + Cilantro 

Serves 4

?2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon vegetable oil, divided
?1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
?1 small garlic clove, finely grated
?3 medium green tomatoes (about 1 pound), sliced ½-inch thick
?4 (8-inch) flour tortillas
?1 cup coarsely grated Monterey Jack
?4 cups baby arugula
?1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
?1 medium, ripe avocado, sliced ?
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice, plus wedges for serving?
3 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh cilantro 

See the full recipe (and save and print it) here.

As a freelance food writer and cook, I first wrote this style of recipe as a column on my blog, The Wright Recipes, as an excuse to cook good food for my friends in a quick and simple way. 

Twenty-Dollar, Twenty-Minute™ Meals grew into a cookbook that’s being published by Workman in May 2013. The recipes found here are original, made especially for Food52 to once again celebrate simple food with friends.

Photos by Caroline Wright