Cherry Tomato Tart
Sometimes you just want to bring the prettiest dish to the party. This tart will certainly succeed on that front, and the secret is that it’s not that much work. If you get good-quality cherry tomatoes, this dish pretty much sells itself. Combining the acidity of the tomatoes with the umami of the cooked onions creates a light combination that is still surprisingly hearty.
1 Day Ahead Fridge to Table Makes 6 to 8 servings
- 1 pie crust (store-bought or homemade recipe at bottom)
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 large onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, diced
- 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, divided
- 3 cups cherry tomatoes (or more if needed depending on size of tomatoes and crust)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh thyme
- 1 teaspoon salt
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
Place the pie crust in a pie pan and crimp the edges. Bake for 5 to 7 minutes, until it has started to harden. Remove it from the oven and cool.
Place a skillet on medium heat and melt the butter. Add the onion and garlic and cook for 10 to 15 minutes until the onions have browned. Add the onion mixture to the pie crust. Sprinkle 2/3 of the Parmesan cheese on top of the pie crust and then add the cherry tomatoes on top. Make sure the cherry tomatoes really fill the pie: err on the side of overfilling rather than underfilling. They will settle as they bake. Sprinkle the thyme, the remaining Parmesan cheese, and the salt on top.
Place in the oven for 20 minutes or until the tomatoes start to brown and pop a little bit. Remove from the oven and cool before serving. Do note that this dish starts to fall apart once you begin cutting, so try to serve it all at once if possible.
How to Bring It
You can easily make this dish ahead of time, and it can be served piping hot, room temperature, or cold. It is easy to transport and doesn’t need a lot of TLC on arrival, so it’s a good one to bring somewhere where an oven isn’t readily available. But as noted above, it’s a bit crumbly so make sure it’s left in a stable location with a good knife and an extra spoon to scoop.
Pie Crust
Makes 2 pie crusts
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar (use 1 1/2 teaspoons for savory dishes)
- 1 cup very cold unsalted butter (2 sticks), chopped into small pieces
- 4 to 8 tablespoons ice-cold water
Stir together the flour, salt, and sugar. Add in the butter using two knives or a spoon, but try not to use your hands too much because you want the mixture to stay as cool as possible. You can also combine the dry ingredients with the butter in a food processor, using the pulse setting. The objective is to get the butter incorporated with the flour, creating pea-size pieces.
Slowly add in the water and mix until it just comes together as a dough. The amount varies depending on the type of flour and butter you use; it may take more or less liquid to bring together. Dump the dough out onto a sheet of plastic wrap, press together in a round, wrap well, and chill for at least an hour.
To roll out, flour a work surface well and divide the dough in half. Using a rolling pin (or an empty wine bottle if you don’t have one), roll out each half into a 1/8-inch-thick round, creating two crusts. The crusts are now ready to be used.
Slowly add in the water and mix until it just comes together as a dough. The amount varies depending on the type of flour and butter you use; it may take more or less liquid to bring together. Dump the dough out onto a sheet of plastic wrap, press together in a round, wrap well, and chill for at least an hour.
To roll out, flour a work surface well and divide the dough in half. Using a rolling pin (or an empty wine bottle if you don’t have one), roll out each half into a 1/8-inch-thick round, creating two crusts. The crusts are now ready to be used.
Reprinted from “Bring It!” © 2018 by Ali Rosen. Published by Running Press.
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