8.11.2009

Tomato & Goat Cheese Tart



When Tommy and I first began dating, we took a road trip to Montreal. Arriving to the city late in the evening, we grabbed a drink and dinner at the hotel bar. A hidden culinary gem it was not, and the goat cheese pizza we ordered turned out to be a huge mistake. It was disgusting. The cheese was sour, and most likely rotten. A taste like that is not soon forgotten.

While my faith in goat cheese has be restored in the past few years, Tommy runs the opposite direction at the mere mention. Sometimes I use it deceitfully to my advantage. Oh, this cookie? Sorry, it has goat cheese it in. This fudge sundae? Yup, goat cheese again!



I have tried to sneak goat cheese into dishes, bribed him into trying bites, but he refuses, shakes his head continuously, and utters "Montreal" under this breath. So when I made this tart over the weekend, I knew he wouldn't be interested. But by the next afternoon, the leftovers taunted him as lunch time approached and his stomach began to rumble. A few minutes later I hear, “Oh my god, this is really good!” Damnit. Now I’m going to have to find another way to keep him from eating all my cookies.



Tomato & Goat Cheese Tart
serves 4

1 pastry puff sheet, rolled thin
3 eggs
1/4 c milk
3-4 oz crumbled goat cheese
3 T grated parmesan cheese
1/4 c basil leaves, roughly chopped
1 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1 T olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 leeks (white and green parts only), chopped
2 tomatoes, sliced thin



Preheat oven to 350F. In a 9 1/2” tart pan, press pastry sheet firmly into bottom and edges. Trim and discard excess. Pierce all over with a fork and place in freezer, 5-7 minutes. Transfer to oven and bake 5 minutes. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat eggs with milk. Stir in goat cheese, parmesan, basil, salt and pepper, and set aside. In a medium saucepan, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add garlic and leeks, and sauté 5-7 minutes, until garlic in golden brown. Transfer to bowl with eggs and stir well. Pour mixture into pre-baked pastry puff. Lay tomato slices on top.

Place in oven and bake 35 minutes, until top puffs and begins to brown. Transfer to counter and allow to cool. Press bottom of tart pan up, releasing sides and place on a flat surface. Cut into wedges to serve.

15 comments:

Amanda Nicole said...

This looks a-mazing! Will definitely have to try, thank you :)

kara said...

Oh my gosh this sounds SO good!!! What a funny post-
I saw some beautiful leeks at the farmer's market last week...definitely will be trying this one

Dana said...

What a perfect combination! I love leeks and they are so underused. I've never used puff pastry like that. It's a great idea.

Anonymous said...

I'm with you, I had to learn to like goat cheese after some unpleasant encounters. Now I love it! And, now I know what I'm making for dinner tonight! YUM!

Rachel said...

We have a goat cheese addiction in our household. This recipe will definitely be at the top of my list!

Lisa@Pickles and Cheese said...

That Tomato Tart is just so pretty to look at! I am with Tommy and not a big fan of goat cheese but I think I am going to try this with feta cheese in place of the goat and hope I can get mine to look as wonderful as yours! Thanks.

The Depressed Yogi said...

MMmm you are a woman after my own heart! Goat cheese = my fave cheese and in a tart with tomatoes?? Heavenly!!

Jennifer said...

That looks perfect!!! I love goat cheese in tarts! yum!

Laura Gaskill said...

Mmm! This looks like the perfect dish to make on a summer evening now that the tomatoes are getting really good...I'm going to jot down the ingredients on my grocery list right now!

escapade said...

This sounds amazing! - added to the list...

Caroline Hancox said...

ooo yum and great photos! I just wanted to stop by and say thanks for the lovely comment you left about my work on the Simply Hue blog, it made my day!

Caroline x

leslie said...

This looks divine. I love your goat cheese story -hopefully you did end up finding some good food in Montreal?

lisaiscooking said...

That's funny! And, your tart looks fantastic. Ripe tomatoes are a great match with goat cheese.

Margo said...

ohmygooodness, i love tomatoes, goat cheese, and basil, and tarts... i'm so glad i found your blog !

Lil B said...

I made your recipe last week and we loved it! It's going to be my go-to dish for a while. I actually messed up and forgot to saute then leeks and garlic, rather I just threw them into the egg and cheese mix, but it was still delish!