Let’s all send up a collective “thank you” that tomato season is finally here.
Y’all should have seen the huge smile I sported in the produce section last week when I saw that my grocery had carved out a section for those gorgeous heirloom tomatoes that only show up during the summer months. I’m one of those people who used to hate tomatoes with a passion; turns out, I only hated them because they were either watery consistency that comes with out-of-season tomatoes, or they weren’t prepared in a way that truly highlights their incredible sweetness and flavor.
Luckily, I’m now firmly on Team Tomato and am always on the hunt for new ways to incorporate them into my meals. While I love a great tomato sauce or simply thick slices of fresh tomatoes on a slice of toasted bread, this tomato tart might just be my new all time favorite way of using up those beautiful heirlooms.
My love for this recipe comes from not just how amazing it tastes, but how incredibly easy it is to put together. A few really simple ingredients come together to create something that is super flavorful and incredibly gorgeous to plate up.
With summer entertaining right around the corner, I’m definitely taking note of easy recipes that are perfect for both al fresco dining and convenient enough to transport to last minute gatherings. All you have to do for this tart is whip up your cheese base, slice up some tomatoes, and let the oven do the rest!
To flavor the cheese base, I used a combo of cream cheese and goat cheese. I like the creaminess that classic cream cheese has with the extra little bite of tang from the goat cheese. If you wanted something extra melty, I think you could toss in some shredded mozzarella or gruyere. Some fresh thyme, garlic, and lemon zest round out the cheese spread and once you top it off with your tomato slices it’s ready to spend some time hanging out in the oven. I of course topped it all off with some fresh basil, tomato’s best friend, and some Everything Bagel seasoning just for something extra.
You can play around with the herbs you have on hand and serve up hot out of the oven or at room temperature. Honestly, this tart is just as good the next day, reheated in a skillet to get the crust re-crispy and topped with an egg for breakfast. Here’s to a summer full of gatherings with good friends and lots of tomatoes!
Heirloom Tomato Tart
Serves 6
This Tomato Tart Is What You Should Make With Your Heirlooms
Categories
Ingredients
- 5 oz of goat cheese, room temperature
- 6 oz of cream cheese, room temperature
- Zest of 1/2 lemon
- 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
- 1/2 tbsp of fresh thyme, finely chopped
- 4 - 5 heirloom tomatoes, sliced
- 1 sheet of puff pastry, thawed in the fridge overnight (you can find puff pastry sheets in the freezer section. Just set the box in the fridge overnight to allow the dough to thaw)
- To top: fresh basil, lemon juice, everything bagel seasoning, salt and pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F
- In a mixing bowl, add the goat cheese, cream cheese, lemon zest, chopped garlic, thyme, a pinch of salt, and a few turns of black pepper. Stir until smooth and spreadable - this is why it's important for the cream and goat cheese to be at room temperature. Set aside.
- To prep the tomatoes, once sliced, simply place onto a paper towel to soak up any extra moisture and set aside. You don't need to pat completely dry.
- Line a cutting board with parchment paper, you'll use this same parchment paper to line your sheet tray for baking. Place the sheet of puff pastry onto the parchment paper and roll out to about 10 inches x 12 inches. Move the pastry onto a sheet tray.
- Parbake the puff pastry for just about 4 - 5 minutes in the oven before spreading with the toppings, you don't want the pastry to start puffing as it will be hard to spread the cheese, but this will help the pastry to start cooking.
- Remove the pastry from the oven and spread with the cream cheese mixture with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon. If the cheese mixture is hard to spread, fill a ziplock bag or piping bag with the mixture and pipe into lines onto the pastry, then spreading with the spatula. piping will make this step easier.
- Once the cheese has been spread into an even layer, lay the slices of tomato on top. drizzle with a little olive oil and place in the oven.
- Bake for 35 - 40 minutes, until the edges of the pastry have turned golden brown and the tomatoes have baked. *If the edges of your pastry bake too quickly, cover with foil.
- Remove from oven. serve hot or allow to cool for 10 - 15 minutes before serving. Garnish with desired toppings.
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