Stuffed tomatoes with rice

Ingredients:

• 4 large tomatoes (about 1.5 kg total)
• 2 teaspoons coarse salt
• 1/4 cup tightly packed fresh basil leaves
• 1/4 cup vegetable or chicken broth
• 0.5 tsp dried oregano
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed and peeled
• 1/4 tbsp. + 2 tbsp. l. olive oil
• 0.5 cup tomato puree (or more, as needed)
• 3/4 tbsp. arborio rice
• 2 large potatoes, diced
• Grated Parmesan, optional

Preparation:

1. Cut off the top quarter of each tomato and set aside. Scoop out the pulp and transfer it to a blender. Sprinkle the tomato cups with 0.5 teaspoon of salt. Sprinkle the pulp in the blender with basil, broth, oregano, garlic, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and 1 teaspoon of salt. Blend on high speed until smooth, then pour the puree into a medium bowl. You should have about 2 1/4 cups. Add the tomato puree and mix. You should have 2 1/4 cups of the mixture. If not, add more puree. Stir in the rice.
2. Preheat oven to 190°C.
3. Line the potatoes in the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Toss well. Arrange the tomatoes on top of the diced potatoes. Fill each tomato almost to the top with the rice filling. Top the tomatoes with the cut off tops. Pour the remaining filling over the tomatoes and potatoes. Drizzle the entire dish with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and bake until the tomatoes are blistered and the rice is cooked through, 1 hour 15 minutes.
4. Serve sprinkled with grated Parmesan cheese, if desired.