Any tomatoes, whether plain old plum or Roma tomatoes at the supermarket or seductively misshapen heirlooms from the farmers’ market, will do the trick in this tart. Slow roasting the summery orbs (or, if using plum tomatoes, oblongs) concentrates the tomatoes’ sweet depths without masking their inherent acidity. And when you layer that on a simple pastry with aged cheese and basil, well, you sorta have to taste a slice of this tart to truly understand. The raw tomatoes released too much of their liquid, which made the crust soggy. So we decided to slow roast them to draw out their moisture and intensify their flavor before we added them to the tart shell.We think you’ll agree it was a perfect choice.–Renee Schettler
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“Oh my! This was so delicious! The roasted tomatoes were sweet and robust. The crust was to die for. I had no issue with the crust becoming soggy. It takes time to do this in a day, so plan ahead. But, it is so worth it!”–Karen
Roasted Tomato-Basil Tart
Ingredients
For the slow-roasted tomatoes
- 2 pounds plum tomatoes, (or smallish heirloom tomatoes of any sort)
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped rosemary leaves
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the tart dough
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for the work surface
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 6 tablespoons (3 oz) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
- 4 to 5 tablespoons ice water
For the tart
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- 1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 pound St. George* or medium-aged white Cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1/2 cup chiffonade of basil leaves, (that means cut into long, narrow strips)
- 2 tablespoons crème fraîche
- 1 large egg mixed with 1 tablespoon whole milk
Instructions
Make the slow-roasted tomatoes
- Preheat the oven to 225°F (107°C).
- Cut each tomato in half crosswise. (Alternatively, if using large plum tomatoes or any size heirloom tomatoes, thickly slice the tomatoes crosswise into about 4 portions.) Arrange the sliced tomatoes, cut side up, on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle the tomato halves evenly with the olive oil, sprinkle with the rosemary, and season with salt and pepper. Roast the tomatoes until the moisture is completely removed, 4 to 6 hours, depending on the size of your tomatoes. The tomatoes should be dry but still soft to the touch, and when you press a tomato with your finger, it will feel plump yet exude no liquid. (If using sliced tomatoes instead of halves, you may wish to start checking them at 2 hours.) Remove from the oven and let the tomatoes cool completely.
Make the tart dough
- In a bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Scatter the butter over the flour mixture and, using your fingers, gently press the butter and flour together until it resembles a coarse meal. Drizzle the ice water over the top and, using a fork, gently toss and stir just until the dough comes together in a cohesive clump.
- Gather the dough into a ball and place it on a lightly floured work surface. Flatten the dough into a thick disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 2 days.
Assemble the tart
- Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat it to 375°F (190°C).
- In a sauté pan, heat the 2 tablespoons oil over low heat and stir in the onion. Cover and sweat over low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, until the onion is soft and translucent. Do not allow the onion to color. (Alternatively, if you prefer properly caramelized onions, you can uncover and cook the onions until golden brown and intensely flavorful.) Remove from the heat, season with salt and pepper, and let cool completely.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough to a round about 12 inches in diameter. Carefully move the round to the parchment.
- Layer half of the cheese on the dough round, leaving a 1-inch border uncovered around the edge. In a small bowl, combine the cooled onion, the basil, and the crème fraîche and mix well. Spread the onion mixture evenly over the cheese layer. Top with the roasted tomatoes, then cover with the remaining cheese. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil.
- Fold the uncovered edge of the tart onto itself, forming uniformly spaced pleats every few inches around the perimeter. Brush the overturned edge of dough with the egg wash.
- Bake the tart for 30 to 40 minutes, until the crust is a nice golden brown. Remove the tart from the oven, and slide it onto a wire rack, and let it cool until it’s warm or at room temperature. Slice and serve.
Notes
*What is St. George cheese?
St. George cheese, made in northern California, is reminiscent of Cheddar but in the style of a traditional cheese of the Azorean island of Sào Jorge. It’s a semi hard to hard cheese, made from cow’s milk. It has a texture similar to Cheddar with a buttery feel and spicy, tangy undertones. A good sharp white Cheddar or even Manchego would make a terrific substitute.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe Testers’ Reviews
Oh my. This tart is definitely in the “make again” category for a number of reasons. First of all, nothing beats the combination of late-summer tomatoes and good-quality white cheddar cheese. Since I didn’t have plum tomatoes in my garden, I used grocery store tomatoes and found, much to my infinite delight, that the slow roasting brought out every bit of smoky sweet goodness those tomatoes had to offer. Wow—these just dripped and oozed flavor. Could it be that this tart can be replicated in the tomato’s off-season with equal success? I’ll definitely be finding out.
The tart dough was a dream to work with. It came together quickly in my Cuisinart and, once chilled, was so easy to roll out and crimp up in a rustic crostata style. The finished product looked like it came out of a professional kitchen. This would be a real showstopper at a dinner party or luncheon.
My halved plum tomatoes were still very moist at 4 hours, and in fact, still pretty moist at 5 and even 6 hours, so I was confused by the instruction to roast until “the moisture is completely removed.” Luckily, the remaining juices didn’t ruin the bottom of the tart dough as I’d feared, but I still feel like the potential for a soggy tart bottom is fairly high.
My recommendation would be to cut the plum tomatoes in 4 slices next time, not 2 (and to watch them in the oven carefully after 2 hours so they don’t become too dry and leathery). Also, I believe the 2 pounds of tomatoes called for was on the high side. The tart wasn’t overly generous in size and I only had room on top for 6 halves. Maybe I should’ve added more tomatoes, overlapping them?
I love tomato pie but have always had the same problem—the liquid from the tomatoes‚ even after I drained and salted them, making the crust soggy. So I was so excited to see this brilliant recipe using roasted tomatoes. When I removed the tomatoes from the oven, they had a dark, rich color with brown edges.
Making the tart dough the day before and the tomatoes and onions in the afternoon made this so easy to put together and have for dinner with friends. I served this with a salad, marinated roast pork tenderloin, and rolls—truly wonderful.
This is a delicious tart. The taste is great and it looks beautiful. Given that tomatoes are in season right now, it’s a great time to do something different. You can do this recipe in pieces over a few days to make it easier or as a weekend project.
The onions took a lot less time than the recipe stated and they definitely could be made a day ahead. I’d also say that a little browning wouldn’t hurt. (We all really like caramelized onions here.) The dough could also be made a day ahead. I used aged sharp white Cheddar, and it was delicious in combination with the other flavors. It took about 30 minutes to bake. It has a very thin crust.
I made this tart twice and both times it got rave reviews from my tasters. I used my own homegrown San Marzano-style tomatoes, which roasted to a sweet, intense tomato flavor. The crust was perfectly tender and flaky, which I attribute to mixing it by hand.
The tomatoes took exactly 4 hours to roast. They were quite dry but still soft to the touch and looked exactly like sun-dried tomatoes. Nowadays, so many tart/piecrust recipes use the food processor, which can lead to a much less tender crust. My tart took 40 minutes to bake.
This tart was a little bit of a project, but very easy to break down into parts and then put together quickly. It came out beautifully, too, with perfect, flaky pastry, sweet tomatoes, and tangy Cheddar. I’ve made a different tomato tart each week this summer, trying to keep up with the tomatoes ripening in my garden, and this one is my favorite to date.
The only small problem I ran into was with the roasting of the tomatoes. After 4 hours in the oven, they still seemed to have quite a bit of liquid left so I let them go for another hour, and then another hour after that for 6 hours total. At that point, I still wasn’t 100% sure that they were done, but it was late and I needed to get to bed so I let them cool a little before putting them away in the refrigerator.
The next day, it became clear that they were in fact done when I pulled them out. I think the main cue was that when I pressed into one with my finger, even though it still appeared to be plump, no liquid seeped out and they were quite a bit darker than when they started.
With the pastry, I found I only needed 4 tablespoons of the ice water. All the bits of flour were wet and I was afraid if I added the last tablespoon it’d be a soggy mess. I’d recommend adding 2 tablespoons at a time, tossing the flour/butter mixture until it appears it’ll come together into a cohesive dough. I refrigerated the pastry for several hours and it rolled out beautifully once I was ready to assemble the tart.
When the tart was sitting on the counter waiting to go into the oven, my husband came into the kitchen and was very impressed with how pretty it looked. We both hoped that its flavor would live up to its looks and it certainly didn’t disappoint. We served the tart with a simple green salad for a wonderful summer meal.
A very nice summer tart full of great flavors. The tomatoes were rich from slow roasting, and with the sweet onion and cheese, they made a juicy, gooey, and delicious topping.
I made the crust, roasted the tomatoes, and sautéed the onion the day before (I didn’t think the onion would “cool completely” while the oven preheated), which made it a cinch to assemble the tart for dinner the following day.
Do you end up with lots of garden tomatoes at the end of the season? Save 8 or so plum tomatoes for this tart—it’d be lovely for a summer’s-end picnic. (One leftover piece spent the night in the fridge at our house. I ate it cold the next day for lunch and was pleased that the crust wasn’t at all soggy.)
As a longtime fan of tomato pie (my mom makes a killer one), I had high hopes for this more refined interpretation, and I wasn’t disappointed. Whereas mom’s tomato pie dilutes the essence of the tomatoes by using them raw and including copious amounts of mayonnaise, this tart highlights our sweet summer friends by calling for roasted tomatoes (the roasting greatly concentrates their flavor), just a touch of crème fraîche, and a fine cheddar to provide a salty counterpoint. The sweetness of the gently cooked onion reinforces the flavor of the tomatoes without overpowering it, and the herbal kick from the basil brings the whole combination into sharp focus.
The tart dough was wonderful to work with, though I did find that a 1-inch border didn’t quite provide enough of a lip to safely contain the tart’s filling, which started to ooze out in a couple of spots. I also found that the tomatoes took about an hour longer than the recipe dictates to achieve the supple, leatherlike consistency of a perfectly roasted Roma. Of course, it could be due to the fact that my Romas were a touch on the large side. Finally, in my oven the tart was done at just over 40 minutes, with the cheese starting to burn in spots, so pay attention as you approach the end of the stated cooking time.
We let ours cool to just slightly warm before eating it and were thrilled with the result. The crisp, buttery crust, the bold umami sweetness of the roasted tomatoes, and the caramelized salty chew of the cheddar make this a dish that I know we’ll enjoy many more times in the waning weeks of our fabulous tomato season.
This tart is flavorful and savory and would be perfect before dinner with drinks or as a main course with a purslane salad. For an appetizer, it might be fun to make in a long rectangular tart pan so it could be cut into squares. Also, the tomatoes are delicious on their own.
This looks so good! But I’m doing Keto so we’ll have it for dinner on Portobella mushroom caps.
That’s a fun way to mix it up, Rainey. Can’t wait to hear how it turns out with the mushrooms.
It was delicious! We have one mushroom cap leftover and it promises to make an excellent sandwich on a crusty roll.
One thing I learned in the process of planning it was that the caps exude less liquid and present as “meatier” if the gills are removed.
Apart from that I prepared each element separately well in advance. I rewarmed the roasted tomato and caramelized onions while the mushrooms got their initial grilling. Then I assembled all the elements and broiled them.
They were delicious and made a very satisfying low-carb, meatless meal.
That’s amazing, Rainey. Thank you so much for sharing the details of how it all came together. I’ll definitely have to give that a try.
This may be one of the most delicious foods I have ever eaten! I have made this twice while garden tomatoes were abundant in late summer. In both instances, I used leeks rather than onions because I happen to be partial to them and regular sharp cheddar cheese. I love this tart- it brings a smile to my face just thinking about it.
How wonderful to read your comment—thank you, Sasha! Those garden tomatoes are such treasures!
We love Tomato and Onion Pie and I am intrigued to try yours. I saw a review about the tomatoes causing liquid in the pie and was wondering if you could layer the onions and cheese first, then combine the creme fraiche, etc. with a small beaten egg to hold the middle together and maybe absorb the tomatoes. The pie looks divine but I am concerned about roasting the tomatoes first as it might make them soggy. I will try your method first and mine, second and let you know. Thanks so much for sharing!
Great suggestion, Grammasue. We’re looking forward to hearing how the two methods compare.