Sunday, October 15, 2006

Tomato Tart


There are many tomato tart recipes out there. I've got three in my recipe book right now. I've borrowed bits and pieces from the ones I like, and created a tart which made my husband proclaim, "This is the one". I like to serve this to vegetarian friends, who are too often served some sort of pasta dish when invited for dinner at a friend's house.
I've used heirloom tomatoes here, but it is easier to use Roma or Plum tomatoes because they have less water. The colors and taste of these tomatoes make me think of the tomatoes from my father's garden. This was a last chance tart, as the tomatoes are almost gone for the summer. The flavor of the tomatoes really comes out in this dish, and the combination of goat cheese, tomato, and basil is great. The fontina buubles slightly under the broiler. Melted cheese. Delicious!

(Draining the tomatoes is optional. Drain them if they are very ripe.)

1 head roasted garlic (recipe follows)
1/2 recipe Martha Stewart's pate brisee, or 1 Pillsbury Pie crust
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 cup crumbled goat cheese
3/4 cup grated italian fontina
2 lbs. tomatoes
3 tbs. olive oil, divided
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
10 basil leaves, in chiffonade

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Drain the tomatoes. Slice tomatoes 1/4" thick and lay on a rack over a cookie sheet. Sprinkle tomatoes with salt and pepper. Let drain 30 minutes.

Spray a 9" tart pan with Pam cooking spray. Form crust in pan, prick with a fork, and chill. Line the crust with tin foil and pie weights, rice or beans, then blind bake the crust for 20 minutes. Remove the weights, prick again with a fork, and bake for 8 minutes more.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread roasted garlic over the bottom of the tart. Heat 2 tbs. olive oil in a large pan over medium-low heat. Cook onion with 1/4 tsp. salt and 1/8 tsp. pepper until golden, about 10 minutes. Spread onions over garlic, then top with 3/4 cup crumbled goat cheese and 1/4 cup grated fontina. Arrange tomato slices over the cheese. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of fontina and a 1/4 cup of goat cheese. Drizzle with 1 tbs. olive oil. Bake 15 minutes at 350 degrees, then place 7" under broiler for about 5 minutes. Let cool slightly, and top with basil. Serves 4.

Roasted Garlic
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Trim the top off of 1 head of garlic. Place garlic in a square of parchment paper. Pour 1 tbs. olive oil over garlic. Wrap parchment-covered garlic in tin foil. Bake in the oven until soft, about 1 hour.

1 comment:

Amy Urban said...

Thank you! I'm so pleased to see that you're interested! Yes, I'd love to have a link from your blog. I'm not concerned about language, as Abbie is currently learning several bad habits from her parents. not from reading materials. Hope you are well!