Heirloom Tomato Tart
My husband is away on a guys’ trip, my five year old is off from school this week, and it’s 30 degrees outside. April Schmapril. I told Cameron (my five year old) that he was man-of-the-house for a few days. He’s taken that to heart. On Wednesday morning he said, “honey, can I have some milk?” I asked him why he was calling me honey. He replied, “because you’re honey and I’m dear.” Okay. Yesterday, while at the grocery store, he asked very seriously, “Are we out of coffee, honey?” Then, this morning at the Childrens Museum, he sighs, “kids are crazy, right honey?” We now call this game Honey and Dear. Oh, and hey, I made Pim Techamuanvivit’s heirloom tomato tart from her fabulous book The Foodie Handbook!
This heirloom tomato tart begins with the most delicious, crumbly, buttery, Parmesan-flavored tart dough. It is quite like a savory shortbread dough.
The crust is topped with juicy tomatoes, and sprinkled with sea salt, basil and some blue cheese.
Here’s how it’s done–in a food processor, pulse together the flour, butter, and grated Parmesan. When the dough starts to pull away from the center you’re good to go.
Dump the dough onto a clean counter. It’s going to be a crumbly mess- don’t worry!
Knead and push the dough until it comes together.
Press the dough into the tart tin using plastic wrap. Oh, and make sure your hands are nice and cold. Once the dough is in the tin, wrap well in plastic and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
After the dough has chilled and rested, it needs to be blind-baked. Remove the plastic wrap, prick the inside with a fork, and place a sheet of parchment on top. Fill with pie weights and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the crust is dry. While the tart dough is baking, get the tomatoes ready. Slice them up, place them on a baking sheet lined with paper towels, and sprinkle with sea salt. Set aside.
When the tart dough is out of the oven, gently place the tomato slices on top, and bake for another 15 minutes. Five minutes in, sprinkle blue cheese and some basil over top. When it’s done, let the tart cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.
- 1 1/2 cups (187.5 g) All-Purpose Flour
- 3/4 cup (100 g) freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 1/2 cups (200 g plus 1 tablespoon) Unsalted Butter, cold but close to room temperature
- 3 to 4 large Heirloom Tomatoes, or 8 to 10 small Tomatoes
- 1/2 TBS Sea Salt
- a handful of crumbled Blue Cheese or Mozzarella (optional)
- 2 Basil Leaves, cut in strips
- In the bowl of a food processor, add all three ingredients and hit pulse repeatedly about 5 to 10 times. The ingredients will begin to mix together and turn a little bit sandy. When the dough resembles clumpy wet sand, process it for about 7 to 10 seconds, just until the dough pulls away from the center. Empty the processor bowl onto a clean surface. Knead the dough gently a few times. Use a dough scraper to pick up any stray bits and fold them into the middle. At this point the dough should be the consistency of Play-doh, and easy to work with.
- Now the dough is ready to be pressed into the tart pan. Make sure your hands are cold while doing this or everything will turn into a sticky mess. It is helpful to use a sheet of plastic wrap between hand and tart dough. Press the dough evenly against the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Wrap the lined tart pan with plastic wrap and let it rest in the fridge for 30 minutes to 1 hour before use. *If you wrap it tightly you can keep the prepared shell until the next day, which is quite handy to do ahead for a party. Or, you can leave the dough at the resting stage for 30 minutes or overnight. In this case press the dough into a 4- to 5-inch disc, wrap it tightly with plastic wrap and let it rest in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it.*
- Preheat the oven to 350 degree F.
- After the tart dough has "rested", prick the bottom of the tart with the tines of a fork, being careful not to puncture the shell all the way through. Place a sheet of parchment over the tart shell and fill with pie weights. Blind bake the tart for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the dough doesn't appear wet anymore.
- While the dough is baking, you can prepare the tomatoes. Line a large baking tray with paper towels. Wash and dry the tomatoes and slice them into about 1/2-inch slices. Lay them down side by side on the baking sheet, and don't allow them to overlap. Sprinkle with the sea salt over the tomato slices and let the juice drain out for about 20 minutes.
- After the shell has been in the oven for 20 minutes or so, remove it to cool for a few minutes, and turn the oven up to 400 degrees F.
- When the pastry shell is cool enough to touch without burning yourself, you're ready to line it with the tomato slices and finish the tart. Take another length of paper towels and press it gently over the top of the tomato slices to remove any excess liquid. Gently pick up each slice of tomato and line the tart with them, overlapping slightly, until the tart is completely covered. Return the tart to the oven and bake for another 15 minutes or until the tart crust is beautifully golden. If you want to be more indulgent, break up a few chunks of blue cheese, or mozzarella, and scatter them all over the tart about 10 minutes before it finishes baking. Sprinkle some chopped basil leaves on top too.
- Remove the tart from the oven and let it stand for 5 to 10 minutes before cutting it into slices and serving.
- Food processor
- 10-inch fluted tart pan with removable bottom
- Pie weights (raw rice or dried beans works too)
