Summer = tomatoes! Heirloom tomatoes are over-the-top delicious! Their characteristic sweetness brings forth a most intense tomato flavour that makes them delicious enough to eat as you might an apple or pear. Bite right in, and enjoy their juicy goodness. Of course, slicing them up and creating a simple salad with a sprinkle of sea salt and pepper is also a lovely way to highlight their flavour.
This recipe was inspired by an Instagram page I happened to scroll past: @thefeedfeed.baking It was here that I spotted a Tomato Galette. The galette form works best with regular flour that contains gluten, because you need some elasticity in the dough so you can fold over the sides of the galette. I wanted to use gluten free flours, so I’ve made something more along the lines of a traditional socca base. What differs in my recipe is I use chickpea flour and almond meal, and instead of socca’s olive oil, I borrowed from the galette recipe and used butter. I have to say, the combination I’ve created works really well in its slight crunch which contrasts beautifully with the soft, sweet tomatoes.
After having the first few bites of the tart, I couldn’t help but think what a crumble of fresh feta would do to heighten its flavour profile. Caramelized onions would also be a welcome layer, just under the tomatoes. When it comes out of the oven, a drizzle of olive oil brings it all together, and a splash of pesto will take it to another level entirely. As well, I added a poached egg to another slice the next day when I had it for leftovers at lunch.
Served up as individual slices as part of a main meal, or cut into smaller pieces for an hors d’oeuvre, whichever way you decide to make this, I hope you will appreciate the little celebration of one of summer’s most versatile bounties. 🙂
Ingredients for Heirloom Tomato Tart
- 2 c chickpea flour
- 1½ c almond meal
- ¼ cup ground flaxseed
- 1½ tsp kosher salt
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 175g cold, unsalted butter, cut into 2 cm cubes
- 4-6 Tbsp water, scant
- 2-4 heirloom tomatoes, sliced in to 1cm thick pieces (quantity depends on the size of the tomatoes)
- 4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
- 4 Tbsp pesto sauce (optional)
- salt and pepper
Directions
- Begin by mixing together all of the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Then add the cubes of cold butter and cut these into the dry mix by rubbing it in with your fingers. (You can also use a pastry cutter.) When the butter/flour mixture begins to come together, add in the water, a tablespoon at a time until the mixture comes together to form a stiff dough – it shouldn’t be sticky. When you’re satisfied by the texture of the dough, form it into a flat, square block, wrap it in parchment and place it in the fridge for about an hour.
- Just before the hour of chilling is up, pre-heat your oven to 200C/400F.
- Take the dough out of the fridge, and line a standard baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper. Now it’s time to slice the tomatoes and set them aside, (I like to cut mine on a board with a groove around the edge as the tomatoes will release their juices and you can pour these off when they accumulate and this will keep your base from getting soggy.) Get your pesto sauce ready if you’re choosing to use it. ***A note about the pesto – I suggest adding a couple of tablespoons of olive oil to your pesto so you can brush it on the crust, and/or drizzle it over the top as you serve the tart.
- Unwrap the dough and place the parchment on your counter. Place the block of dough onto the parchment. Start to roll the dough into a rectangle that will fit onto your baking sheet. The dough will be stiff, but give it a few rolls and it should start to relax. When the dough is rolled out to about 1cm thickness, gently pick up the parchment and transfer this to the baking sheet. Spend a minute or two on the edges, crimping them to form a little wall around the perimeter, about 2cm high. Bake this in the oven for 8 minutes when you’ll see that the dough has started to firm up.
- After 8 minutes, remove the baking sheet from the oven and brush it with olive oil or pesto. Now it’s time to arrange the tomatoes onto the base, slightly overlapping the slices to form a bit of a mound as they will shrink while baking. When you have filled the base, give a quick drizzle of EVOO, a sprinkle of sea salt and crack of fresh pepper. Place the tart back into the oven and continue to bake for another 30-40 minutes. I strongly urge you to set your timer for 20 minutes, when you should take a peek at the tart – if it is starting to brown too much on the edges (like mine did) take strips of aluminium foil and cover the edges for the remainder of the baking time.
- When the tart is fully baked, remove the baking sheet from the oven and give the tart a drizzle of EVOO or pesto, and let it rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving. ***There’s a bit of time involved with this recipe, but only because of the time it takes to rest the dough.
