Perfection Is Overrated

As if tasting delicious weren't enough, this dish has another thing going for it: it's supposed to not look perfect. This is my kind of dinner!

This Tomato, Goat Cheese, and Olive Tart could be called "rustic" or "free form." Or, as Melissa Camero Ainslie, who who shared the recipe on her excellent blog, Bitchin' Camero, said, it could also be called the tart of a lazy person. Whatever you call it, you should make it. It's very easy and a delightful way to highlight summer tomatoes. Although the recipe calls for heirloom tomatoes, I used New Jersey beefsteak tomatoes and it turned out fabulously.

I made one tart and froze the other half of the dough. But I have a feeling I may be defrosting it soon, because this is such a perfect summer meal. Along with a salad, it's a perfect (in a less-than-perfect kind of way) lunch or supper.

Perfection isn't all it's cracked up to be, you know.--S

Hold Onto Summer

With summer slipping through my fingers (60 degrees when I stepped outside to run this morning!), I resolved to get myself to the greenmarket this week and enjoy the still gorgeous produce. The tomatoes, especially, continue to look amazing, and when I saw a recipe for a Caramelized Tomato Tarte Tatin in Wednesday's paper, I knew I had to make it.

I somehow skipped over the "tatin" part when I first read the recipe. What really drew me in were the words "tomato" and "tart." (Incidentally, it was almost exactly a year ago that I discovered this magnificent tomato tart.) The ingredient list seemed perfectly reasonable--puff pastry, onions, sugar, sherry vinegar, olives, tomatoes and thyme--so I made a split-second decision to make it for dinner. Many farmers at the market were selling cherry tomatoes in gorgeous colors, and I asked one of the vendors if I could mix and match them. He thrust a plastic pint basket at me and said, "Go nuts." So I did, handpicking about a pound of red, orange, yellow and purple cherry and grape tomatoes.

And then I got home and read through the recipe--and realized this was a tarte tatin--French code word for "upside down." Riiiight! I've made plenty of apple tarte tatins, and actually love them for their rustic look and simplicity. And that's exactly what this tomato tarte tatin was. I caramelized thinly-sliced onions and set them in a bowl to cool. Then I made a caramel sauce in a nonstick skillet, added the tomatoes and olives, spread the onions on top, plus thyme, salt and pepper, and topped the whole thing with a round of puff pastry dough. Into a 425-degree oven it went, and about 20 minutes later it was golden brown. A quick (and you must do it quickly, there's no other way) flip over onto a plate, and we were ready to eat.

The tarte was both savory and sweet, dessert-y and dinner-y. We gobbled it up with a big green salad, and helped ourselves to seconds. The roasted tomatoes exploded in our mouths, the puff pastry crust slightly crunched, and we were happy to hold onto summer a little bit longer.--S

Sweet Tart

Once Upon a Tart: Soups, Salads, Muffins, and More from New York City's Favorite Bakeshop and Cafe, named after the Soho establishment, was published way back in 2003. But it wasn't until last week that I finally got my hands on a copy. I was working on a story that featured a prominent editor who counted editing this book among his accomplishments, and I figured I should take a look.

Tart has already found its way onto the "frequent use" cookbook shelf in my kitchen. It's a restaurant book that I will actually use, unlike some beautiful but impractical tomes. This is because Tart is comprised of recipes for dishes I make very often: soups, sandwiches, salads, quick breads, cookies... and tarts. Never mind that until last week I'd never made a tart in my life. I've lots of experience with quiches, and after my first dip into tartdom (sounds saucy!), I may be convinced to change my savory pie tune.

I made the Provencal Tart with Gruyere and Herbes de Provence, a tasty tart with oozy tomatoes, a little bang from the sharp cheese, and a perfectly crunchy crust. I made numerous amendments to the recipe: cornmeal instead of semolina flour in the crust, sliced tomatoes instead of cored sliced tomatoes, heavy cream instead of light cream, and I skipped one refrigeration step with the dough. It still turned out great. My parents and I enjoyed it with a bibb lettuce salad and some crusty bread from across the street.

What should I make next? Maybe the Sauteed Spinach-and-Mushroom Tart with Ricotta Cheese, with its pretty lattice crust? Or the Caramelized-Leek-and-Celery Tart, which the authors promise melts in your mouth? Or I could go sweet: Jerome's Mother's Famous Apricot Tart looks awfully good, with burnt-at-the-edges apricots atop apple butter. So does the Alsatian Apple Tart, with its perfectly thin slices of apple looking just gorgeous. Guess I know what I'm doing this weekend.--S