While summer gatherings might look a little different this year, the markets are beginning to fill with beautiful, bright produce that can be enjoyed at home.
Heirloom tomatoes are juicy, colorful, sweet and robust in flavor, and can be showcased in a super easy Heirloom Tomato Tart. Layering the flaky puff pastry crust with a thin spread of basil walnut pesto and juicy heirloom tomatoes makes for a perfect Mother’s Day brunch or any time.
Puff pastry
Making your own puff pastry might make you feel like a hero, but it is not necessary. Frozen puff pastry already comes in the perfect sheets that just need to be thawed out and unrolled, and you are ready for the base of your tart.
Basil walnut pesto
This pesto is bringing all the flavor in this colorful Heirloom Tomato Tart. Using walnuts, garlic, basil leaves, lemon zest, Parmesan, olive oil and lemon juice will create a beautiful green color and a thick, paste-like texture. I love the addition of lemon juice and zest in this recipe for a subtle pop of bright and fresh flavor.
Heirloom tomatoes
Colorful and oddly shaped, heirloom tomatoes are more than just good-looking. So what gives these tomatoes the title “heirloom”? It’s the seeds! The seeds of the best tomatoes are saved from each season, and farmers use them to create the desired sweetness, size, texture and color they like.
Kristen Massad of Dallas, a pastry chef and graduate of the French Culinary Institute in New York, blogs at joyoliver.com.
Heirloom Tomato Tart
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
3 tablespoons basil walnut pesto (recipe follows)
4 heirloom tomatoes
1 egg
¼ cup Parmesan cheese
Basil leaves for garnish
Heat oven to 400 F and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Unfold the puff pastry sheet and shape into a free-form, 9-by-13-inch rectangle.
Using a fork, prick the rectangle all over.
Spread the basil walnut pesto to cover the puff pastry, leaving a 1-inch border around the entire rectangle.
Thinly slice the heirloom tomatoes and arrange them evenly over the pesto. Fold the 1-inch border over the sliced tomatoes to create the edges.
Whisk together 1 egg with 1 teaspoon water to create an egg wash. Brush egg wash over the puff pastry border and then sprinkle with Parmesan.
Bake 20-25 minutes or until the puff pastry is golden brown. Remove the sheet pan from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes.
Transfer the Heirloom Tomato Tart to a cutting board and cut into individual pieces.
Garnish with fresh basil leaves and serve.
Makes 8 servings.
Basil walnut pesto: In a the bowl of a large food processor, combine 1/4 cup walnuts and 2 cloves garlic and process until finely chopped. Add 2 cups fresh basil leaves, 1/4 cup Parmesan, 1/4 cup olive oil, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, zest of one lemon, salt and pepper, and process until mixture is the consistency of a paste; approximately 1 minute. Remove the pesto from the food processor, place in a tightly sealed jar, and store in the refrigerator for a later use or use immediately.
SOURCE: Kristen Massad