A Fall Tart for Last of the Tomatoes

The leaves are ablaze with color, and pumpkins sit on nearly every front porch now. Yet, my garden is still producing tomatoes, despite the distinct fall-like weather. In fact, 'tomaccio' tomatoes from Hort Couture show no sign of stopping until the first hard frost.

That's why I took the advice of my talented friend Isabel Gomes, and I'm paying one last tribute to the tomatoes of 2010.

Isabel not only shared the gorgeous food shot above, but also her favorite tomato tart recipe, which she found "ages ago" in an old Williams Sonoma catalog. I'm sharing it below in case you also find yourself with an unexpected bounty of late-season tomatoes. Enjoy!

Tomato Tart

Ingredients: 

1 ¼ cups all purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt, plus more, to taste

10 tablespoons (1 ¼ sticks) chilled unsalted butter, diced
2 tablespoons ice water

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

8 plum (or 3-4 heirloom) tomatoes, halved lengthwise, seeded

8 oz. goat cheese, crumbled

½ cup slivered fresh basil leaves

Using an electric mixer with a flat beater, mix flour and ½ teaspoon salt on low speed, 15 seconds. Add butter; mix to form pea-sized crumbs, 30 to 40 seconds.

Add water 1 tablespoon at a time; mix just until dough comes together. Turn out onto lightly floured surface. Shape into a 5 inch disk.

Wrap tightly; refrigerate at least 1 hour. Position rack in lower third of oven; preheat to 400 degrees F. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to fit a 9 inch round tart pan.

Press dough into pan, trim to ½ inch around rim and fold in overhang. Press to make sides thicker than bottom; refrigerate 10 minutes.

In a nonstick sauté pan over medium heat, warm 1/3 cup oil. Add garlic; sauté until fragrant, 1 minute. Add salt, pepper and tomatoes, sliced side down until golden, 4 to 5 minutes.

Brush pastry with 1 tablespoon of oil; top with cheese, basil and tomatoes. Drizzle with pan juices; season with salt and pepper. Bake until crust is golden, about 1 hour. Serves 4.

Find Isabel Gomes on Twitter @Isabellawrence, on Facebook at Isabel Lawrence Photographers or on her beautiful blog.