Roasted Tomato Tart with Goat Cheese and Garlic

 

To fully bring out the multi-dimensional taste of these ingredients, I slow roasted both the tomatoes and garlic beforehand and then quickly compiled a simple and incredibly savory tart that we gobble up over the next two days. Slow roasting both the tomatoes and garlic gives each a deeper, more powerful flavor and scent and more importantly cuts the sharpness of the garlic, leaving you with smooth, creamy, caramel tones. A thin layer of goat cheese gives the tart more depth and richness and holds everything together perfectly.

While the recipe will take you a few hours to prepare, the result is worth the separate roasting of ingredients and the final compilation of inputs. The tart, when finished, is gooey, rich, and bursting with the best flavors.

Roasted Tomato Tart with Goat Cheese and Garlic (serves 4)

For the Tomatoes

3 large heirloom tomatoes, sliced in 1/2″ thick rounds (about 4 slices per tomato)
4 anchovy filets, diced
2 tbsp thyme, leaves only
salt and pepper to taste
EVOO

Lay the sliced tomatoes on a cookie sheet and sprinkle with anchovies, thyme, salt and pepper and just enough olive oil to provide a light coating.

Cook for 1.5 hours at 275F. The tomatoes should be slightly browned at the edges and beginning to shrivel, but not dried out. You still want the juices to soften and flavor your tart. Remove them from the oven and set aside.

For the Garlic

2 heads garlic, top 1/2″ removed
EVOO

In a small pan, just large enough to hold the garlic (try a small loaf pan) place each head of garlic cut side up and coat with olive oil so that all sides of the garlic are covered. Bake at 350F for 45 minutes or until the garlic is golden and soft. Remove the garlic and set the olive oil aside to use in the tart.

For the Tart

1 sheet puff pastry
1 cup softened goat cheese
3 sliced, roasted tomatoes
1-2 heads roasted garlic
2 tbsp garlic oil
thyme
sea salt and pepper

When you are ready to compile your tart, place your puff pastry on an oven proof dish just slightly larger then the pastry. Carefully spread about 1 cup of softened goat cheese over the puff pastry until it is just coating the pastry, leaving about an inch on each side uncovered.  Then, layer your tomatoes on top of the goat cheese. Top the tomatoes by squeezing out as many cloves of roasted garlic as you would like (I used two full heads), a couple of tablespoons of leftover garlic oil, a generous sprinkle of thyme leaves and salt and pepper. Fold over the excess pastry or the inch that you have left at the edge. Bake in a 350F oven for about 30 minutes or until the pastry begins to turn golden and puffs up.

Let sit about 5-10 minutes or until the juices from the tomato settle and then cut and serve.