Tomato tart

Serves 6

• 350 g puff pastry
• 1.5 kg fresh tomatoes, all around the same size
• 150 g mascarpone chees
• 50 g Parmesan, finely grated
• 1 biggish bunch fresh basil, leaves picked from the stalks, sliced
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Method;

• Preheat your oven to 220 C
• Roll the puff pastry to a circle slightly larger than 30 cms in diameter.
• Put the puff pastry circle on a tray and let it rest in the fridge for approximately 20 minutes while you prepare the tomatoes.
• Remove the cores from the tomatoes and slice them about 5 mm thick. Keep all the slices together and put the ends in a separate pile.
• Mix the mascarpone cheese with the Parmesan and basil and season well. Spread the mascarpone across the centre of the pastry circle, leaving about 10 mm at the edges. Layer the sliced tomatoes around the outside of the cheese, making a full circle. Continue towards the centre in ever-decreasing circles, overlapping the earlier circle each time.Tuck the tomato ends under each layer to prevent them caving in, then continue towards the centre. Put the last slice right in the middle and drizzle with the olive oil
• Bake the tart in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, then turn down oven to 150 C and bake for a further 45 minutes. When cooked there should be almost no liquid left in the tomatoes, and the pastry will be crisp.

Tip

• You can eat the tart hot or cold and it’s worth making for the aroma alone. You can serve this tart as part of a buffet, or sometimes you can make individual ones and serve them with a sharply dressed salad and a Parmesan mayonnaise.

Recipe by Alex Mackay and photo by Peter Knab