If you haven't ever eaten a fresh, homemade tomato tart, you've been missing out! This recipe is a taste experience that blends pizza and quiche into a savory tart – utterly fantastic. Use store-bought pastry dough to speed up the prep. I recommend serving this tart anytime, though it makes an especially welcome vegetarian entrée for Shavuot, Shabbat luncheon, and Sukkot.
Ingredients
BUTTER PASTRY:
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsalted butter
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 cup ice water
.................................................
TOMATO BASIL TOPPING:
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
1 cup chopped fresh parsley
3 large garlic cloves, peeled
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
Salt, pepper
1/2 cup olive oil
2 1/2 pounds medium-size tomatoes, sliced
1/2 pound medium cheddar cheese, grated
1/4 pound fontina cheese, grated
4 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese grated
Directions
For the pastry
- Place the flour in a large mixer bowl. With a pastry blender, or your hands, cut in the butter until mixture is crumbly – a somewhat lumpy, bumpy mixture of little and larger lumps of flour-covered butter.
- Make a well in center of flour mixture and stir in the sugar, salt, and lemon juice.
- Drizzle in most of the ice water, and using a fork or fingers, toss mixture together to moisten flour. Stir to make a soft mass and pat into a rough dough. Add remaining (or additional) ice water as required to make sure the dough sticks together.
- Turn out onto a lightly-floured work surface. Knead very briefly into a smooth, cohesive dough. Place dough in a Ziploc bag and refrigerate at least one hour or up to two days.
For the tomato basil topping
- In a food processor, add the basil, parsley, thyme, and garlic, and season with salt and pepper. Add olive oil and blend to mince garlic and mix ingredients, about 1–2 minutes.
- Prepare tomatoes and place in a large bowl, cover with herb marinade, and toss to blend.
To assemble and bake
- Stack two baking sheets together and line the top one with parchment paper. Roll out dough on a lightly-floured work surface to an 11 x 17-inch rectangle and transfer to the baking sheet. Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Bake 10-15 minutes to just dry out the crust. Cool slightly and then brush the dough with the Dijon mustard. On top of the dough, arrange half the cheddar and fontina. Arrange the herbed-tomato slices in rows on top of the pastry; add the rest of the grated cheddar and fontina, and last, sprinkle on the Parmesan.
- Bake, immediately lowering temperature to 350°F, 30-35 minutes until the edges of the pastry are browned and top is bubbling (tomatoes are softened, and cheese is melted and golden).
- Cool slightly and cut into large squares to serve. Good served warm, at room temperature, or re-heated.
Marcy Goldman is a cookbook author of several titles and host of the popular website, www.Betterbaking.com. This recipe is reprinted with permission from The Newish Jewish Cookbook (February 2019 River Heart Press).
