The best tomato tart

The best tomato tart

Martha Collison creates a refined tomato tart that celebrates their seasonal variety and colour. A lemon, black pepper and parmesan sablé biscuit pastry holds together a creamy whipped ricotta filling and the top is adorned with all the best heirloom and vine-ripened tomatoes you could wish for.

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  • Serves8
  • CourseMain meal
  • Prepare30 mins
  • Cook25 mins
  • Total time55 mins
  • Pluschilling and cooling

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Ingredients

  • 175g plain flour
  • 150g butter, cold and cubed
  • 125g Parmigiano Reggiano, finely grated
  • ½ unwaxed lemon, zest
  • 1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
  • 400g in-season tomatoes, a mix of heirloom and cherry in various sizes and colours, to decorate
  • 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle
  • Microgreens or cress, to serve

For the filling

  • 250g tub ricotta
  • 200g tub mascarpone
  • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 tbsp whole milk
  • tbsp lemon juice

Method

  1. Start by making the pastry. Place the flour, butter, parmesan, lemon zest and black pepper into a food processor and pulse for 1-2 minutes, or until the mixture begins to clump together and holds its shape when a small amount is squeezed. Shape into a disc with your hands, then wrap and chill for 30 minutes.

  2. Preheat the oven to 180ºC, gas mark 4 and put a 23cm loosebottomed tart tin onto a baking tray. Roll the pastry out into a circle slightly larger than your tin, then use to line it. Press firmly into the edges, then trim the pastry around the top.

  3. Prick the base with a fork, then line with a sheet of baking parchment and fill with baking beans (or equivalent). Bake for 15 minutes, then remove the parchment and baking beans and bake for 10 minutes more until the base is crisp. Allow to cool in the tin, then remove and transfer to a serving plate.

  4. For the filling, put the ricotta and mascarpone into a large mixing bowl and beat well with a balloon whisk. Add 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil and the milk, then whisk again until the mixture is smooth and billowy. Season with a pinch of salt and the lemon juice, mix well, then set aside.

  5. Using a sharp, serrated knife, slice each tomato into rounds of no more than 0.75cm in thickness, going across the grain. Arrange on a large plate, then sprinkle with salt and leave to sit for 15 minutes. The salt will draw water out of the tomatoes, making them firmer and intensifying the flavour.

  6. Using a spatula, spread the whipped ricotta filling into the cooled pastry case and smooth over the top. Drain any excess liquid from the tomatoes, dab with a sheet of kitchen paper, then arrange over the top of the tart. Drizzle with 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil, finish with a good grind of black pepper and a scattering of microgreens or cress, then serve.

Cook’s tip

Tomato knife
It might seem surplus to own a knife specifically for slicing tomatoes, but try one, and you won’t turn back. The serrated teeth on a tomato knife grip and pierce the smooth tomato skin perfectly and create neat slices without squashing the delicate flesh.

Make ahead
The pastry case for this tart can be made up to 3 days ahead, but I recommend filling with the whipped ricotta on the day you serve. Add the tomatoes as close to serving as possible so they don’t become soggy.

Roasting tomatoes
This tart celebrates raw tomatoes, so is best made at the height of summer, when tomatoes are at their ripest and most flavoursome. If making it at other times of the year, or your tomatoes are a little past their best, try roasting the tomato slices at 200ºC gas mark 6 for 15 minutes, then allow to cool before garnishing the tart.

Nutritional

Typical values per serving when made using specific products in recipe

Energy

1,962kJ/ 473kcals

Fat

38.4g

Saturated Fat

23.2g

Carbohydrates

20.2g

Sugars

3.4g

Fibre

1.4g

Protein

11.1g

Salt

1.1g

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