Tomato Tart: a classic French recipe for vine-ripened tomatoes

I learned to make Tarte à la Tomate while living with a French family in northern France. They had a huge garden in their backyard. As fruits and vegetables ripened, they prepared every possible recipe from what the garden produced and froze the rest. Thus, we had tomato salad, tomato confit, tomato gratin, tomato soup, and tomato tart. Tomato tart was new to me, and it was absolutely delicious. Given the time of year, I thought I would share my recipe with all of you.

Ingredients:

Pastry Shell

Four large vine-ripened tomatoes

One shallott

Two tablespoons of Dijon mustard

Two cups of Emmental cheese

Salt, Pepper, Fresh Parsley

Instructions:

Line a tart pan with pastry dough. Store bought is fine, but I always prepare my own and highly recommend it. You can find my super simple recipe here.

Wash the tomatoes and slice into rings. Chop the shallot and fresh parsley and set aside. Line a tart pan with the pastry dough and spread the mustard evenly onto dough. Place a layer of grated emmental cheese on the dough and add sliced tomatoes . Drizzle with olive oil. Salt and pepper to taste. Cook for one hour in a 350 degree oven. As you remove the tart from the oven, add the chopped shallot and parsley.

Serve with a simple green salad and vinaigrette dressing.

Hint: a French chef told me to always faire un liaison or make a connection between courses and plated dishes. So, you may want to substitute parsley for the basil traditionally used in the vinaigrette and also add a teaspoon of Dijon mustard, if you don’t already use it in your dressing.

Bon appétit!