I grew up just eating red tomatoes, but today there are so many varieties of tomatoes and one of my favourites is the heirloom cherry tomatoes. I love the colours and flavours of the various varieties. I like to eat them like grapes and I also like them in a simple salad.
I think the heirloom tomatoes are so beautiful that I just could not put them in any salad bowl so I came with the idea of putting them on a puff pastry base.
This simple tart makes these tomatoes shine.
Ingredients
- 375g sheet of puff pastry
- 1 egg lightly beaten
- 1/4 cup finely grated parmesan
- 400 grams assorted cherry tomatoes, cut in half
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped chives
- 1 fennel bulb, shaved, fronds reserved
Ingredients for the Dressing
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- salt and freshly cracked black pepper
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200C.
- Using a sharp knife, cut the pastry into a 26cm round.
- Gently score a 3cm border around the tart and brush with egg.
- Sprinkle with parmesan to coat and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden and crisp. Allow to cool.
- Put the tomatoes, chives, fennel and dressing in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper and gently toss the tomatoes to coat.
- Pile the tomatoes and fennel into the middle of the tart base and top with fennel fronds.
Tips
- mix all the ingredients for the salad 10 minutes before serving. Let them marinate, but not longer because the tomatoes and fennel will have too much water and loose their freshness.
- As you can see I used already made puff pastry and you can see that one sheet was not enough to make a round cicle. I used two sheets of pastry and I patched them up. The result was amazing and I had a lot of space for my salad and its’ juices.
- You can cut the tart like a pizza into slices for your family or guests. The tart crust can be eaten with your hands to soak up all the juices.
Simply Delicious!
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