Fresh Tomato Tart

I am starting to get some tomatoes from my garden, but not enough yet to make a batch of spaghetti sauce, so my eye was caught by this recipe for a fresh tomato tart in David Lebovitz's blog. I had one large Purple Cherokee tomato on hand and a few tomatoes like Roma but a larger (I forget the name of the variety), and that was plenty for the tart. It was delicious! The crust is unusual in its inclusion of cornmeal, a very nice addition.  Because the tart bakes for about 40 minutes, I think this would likely be fine with grocery store Roma tomatoes if you don't have any home-grown or farmer's market tomatoes. I served it as a side dish with eggplant parmigiana. It would also be nice with some soup or a hearty salad.

FRESH TOMATO TART

adapted from https://davidlebovitz.substack.com/p/fresh-tomato-tart

serves 6 as a side dish

 

For the dough

1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup polenta or cornmeal

2 teaspoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 ounces unsalted butter, chilled and cubed

5 tablespoons ice water, plus more if necessary

 

For the tart

about 3 T. Dijon or whole-grain mustard

3 medium tomatoes (about 1-1/2 pounds)

Salt and freshly ground pepper

6 ounces ricotta (whole milk or part skim)

1-1/2 tablespoons melted butter (I used a little less)

Parmesan cheese, grated

To make the dough, mix together the flour, polenta, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl. or (and use a pastry blender or your fingers to mix the dough). Add the cubed, cold butter and cut into the flour with a pastry blender (or blend in with your fingers) until the pieces of butter are the size of large corn kernels. Add the water mix with a spoon and/or your hands until the dough starts to come together. If the dough feels too dry to do that, add more water, 1/2 tablespoon at a time, until it comes together. (I used about another 1-1/2 T.) Use your hands to gather the dough and shape the dough into a disk. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap or an eco-friendly alternative and chill for at least an hour. (The dough can be made up to 3 days in advance.)

To make the tart, preheat the oven to 400. Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Unwrap it and, holding the disk of dough perpendicular to the counter, rap the sides of the dough on the counter, turning it as you go, to soften the edges, which helps them stay together and not get too ragged when you’re rolling out the dough.

On a lightly floured countertop or large silicone mat, roll the dough out to a 14-inch circle, turning the dough and sprinkling more flour on the counter and the dough to keep it from sticking as you’re rolling.

Place the dough on a flat (not rimmed) baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Spread a layer of mustard on the dough, leaving a couple of inches empty around the perimeter, which you’ll fold over the filling later. 

Slice the tomatoes about 1/3-inch thick and layer them in concentric circles, overlapping them a little, over the mustard. Sprinkle the tomatoes with a little salt and freshly ground pepper. 

Place chunks of ricotta cheese over and, in some places, partially tucked under the tomatoes.

Fold the edges of the dough over the tomatoes to make an outer crust. Brush the edges of the dough with melted butter and grate Parmesan cheese over the entire tart, including the crust. 

Bake until the tomatoes are soft and cooked through and the crust is dark golden brown, about 35-40 minutes. Slide the tart off the pan onto a wire rack and let cool for about ten minutes before putting on a large round plate to serve.