Tomato Tart Recipe

So, I'm not going to go so far as to claim that this is the best garden recipe EVER, but I think the argument could be made.

A couple of notes. As I mentioned before, you can add more tomatoes if you have a lot on hand to use up. I think I regularly use about 5 lbs rather than 3. You may want to add more cheese and seasoning, accordingly. Also, the recipe calls for shredded fontina. If you haven't dealt w/fontina before, you should know that there are 2 kinds commonly available in town: Danish and Italian. They both taste good, but the Danish is way too soft to shred. So, ask for the Italian. If you're not in the mood to visit a specialty store, you can substitute "fontinella," which is easy to find at Schnuck's, etc. It's a sharper cheese, but still tasty in this recipe.

Enjoy folks...


Rustic Tomato Basil Tart

1 ½ lbs medium yellow tomatoes, cut into ¼-inch thick slices
1 ½ lbs medium red tomatoes, cut into ¼-inch thick slices
1 ½ teaspoons salt, divided
1 cup fresh corn kernels (about 2 ears)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons sour cream
1 ½ cups all purpose flour
¼ cup yellow cornmeal
¼ cup chilled butter, cut into small pieces
1 tablespoon yellow cornmeal
½ cup thinly sliced fresh basil, divided
1/3 cup (1 ½ ounces) shredded fontina cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
¼ teaspoon cracked black pepper

1. Arrange tomato slices in a single layer on several layers of paper towels; sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt. Let stand 20 minutes; blot dry with paper towels.

2. Preheat oven to 400.

3. Place corn, juice, and sour cream in a food processor or blender; process until smooth. Combine 1 ½ cups flour, ¼ cup cornmeal, and ½ teaspoon salt in a large bowl; stir with a whisk. Cut in butter with a pastry blender or two knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add corn mixture; stir until a soft dough forms. Knead gently 3 or 4 times.

4. Slightly overlap 2 (16-inch) sheets of plastic wrap on a slightly damp surface [A large, rectangular cutting board works well here]. Place dough on plastic wrap; press into a 6-inch circle. Cover with 2 additional (16-inch) sheets of plastic wrap. Roll dough, still covered, into a 14-inch circle; place on a large baking sheet in freezer for 10 minutes or until plastic wrap can easily be removed. Line baking sheet with parchment paper; sprinkle paper with 1 tablespoon of cornmeal. Remove 2 sheets of plastic wrap from dough. Place dough, plastic wrap side up, on baking sheet. Remove top sheets of plastic wrap.

5. Combine ¼ cup basil, cheese, and oregano. Combine 2 tablespoons flour and ½ teaspoon salt. Arrange cheese mixture on dough, leaving a 1 ½ inch border. Using a sifter or sieve, sift 1 tablespoon flour mixture over cheese mixture. Arrange half of tomatoes over cheese mixture. Sift remaining flour mixture over tomatoes; top with remaining tomatoes. Fold edges of dough toward center; press to seal (dough will only partially cover tomatoes. Bake at 400 for 35 minutes or until crust is brown [Check it frequently toward the end of the bake time—it usually doesn’t take the full amount of time in my oven]. Let stand 10 minutes. Sprinkle with ¼ cup basil and pepper.