August to me means outdoors and to go with that, food that is portable, “easy peasy lemon squeezy”, and of course delicious and nutritious! This tart fits all those criteria plus a great way to showcase those gorgeous summer tomatoes! Slow cooking the tomatoes before assembling not only concentrates the flavor, but also increases the nutritional punch! Whichever crust you fancy, cornmeal, puff pastry, or filo you just can’t go wrong! I brought this tart to the beach last weekend, while on holiday with some friends from the UK, and it was gobbled down in no time! So give it a try! Its as easy as baking a crust, drying some tomatoes, then whizzing some basil and spinach or kale with a bit of nuts, a glug of olive oil, a chunk of Parmesan, and a squeeze of lemon and you are ready to assemble. Do it all ahead of time and voila you can whip out this gorgeous tart and impress even the saviest of eaters!
Roasted Tomato and Pesto Tart
Makes about 8-9 slices
½ tsp extra virgin coconut oil
1 sheet (14oz) all butter puff pastry (Dufour is great) or 2 pre made round cornmeal tarts or 7 sheets filo pastry
1 egg, beaten
6 medium tomatoes sliced into 1/4 of an inch thick slices
1 cup fresh basil pesto below or good quality premade
Shaved fresh parmesan cheese and basil leaves for garnish
Fresh Basil Pesto
1/4 cup (2 fl oz) extra virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
1 cup packed basil leaves and stems
2 cups packed spinach or kale leaves
¼ cup (1 handful) pine nuts, almonds, walnuts, or pistachios
½ cup (2oz) freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 large garlic clove crushed
Directions
Grease a large baking sheet with coconut oil and place tomato slices out on it but do not overlap them. Bake at 325F for 30-40 minutes until slightly shriveled then remove and reserve. Stretch the pastry out if using puff so it is the thickness of a thin sheet of leather or line a 9x12inch pan with the filo sheets with just a touch of olive oil brushed in between layers. Bake at 350F for 10-13 minutes for puff or 5-7 for filo and cornmeal crusts until lightly browned and remove. For the pesto, place the parmesan in the bottom of the blender and blend on high until fine then add in olive oil, lemon, garlic, basil, spinach, and nuts and blend on medium until combined and but still slightly chunky . Spread pesto on tart case and top with tomatoes, basil, and shave cheese over to garnish. Cut into wedges and serve room temperature.
