Tomato Tart with Pastry Crust

Tomato Tart

One 9- or 10-inch (23-25 cm) tart dough (refrigerated dough, or see recipe below)
1 head of garlic, roasted until soft (or 1 Tbs of dijon mustard)
2-3 large ripe tomatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper
2-3 generous tablespoons chopped fresh herbs, such as basil, thyme, chives, chervil, or tarragon
8-12 ounces (250 g) fresh or slightly aged goat cheese, sliced into rounds (or you can substitute fresh mozzarella and parmesan)
Optional: 
1 1/2 tablespoons flavorful honey
1/2 a very thinly sliced sweet onion
  1. Preheat the oven to 400ºF.
  2. Slice the tomatoes and sprinkle with a generous sprinkle of salt (1 tsp'ish).  Allow to sit on paper towels for 10 minutes.  
  3. Place the dough in the pan, pressing to make a nicely fluted crust.  
  4. Spread the roasted garlic over the bottom of the tart dough.  
  5. Pat any excess moisture from the tomatoes and arrange them over the garlic in a single, even layer. Drizzle the olive oil over the top.
  6. Sprinkle with apx. 1 Tbs of the fresh herbs, then arrange the slices of goat cheese on top. Scatter the sliced onion, if using, across the cheese.
  7. Sprinkle another Tbs. of fresh herbs, then drizzle with the honey, if using.
  8. Bake the tart for 35-40 minutes or so, until the dough is cooked, the tomatoes are tender, and the cheese on top is nicely browned. 
  9. Garnish with the final Tbs of fresh herbs, if desired.

Tart Dough:
Tart Dough
1 1/2 cups (210 g) flour
4 1/2 ounces (125 g) unsalted butter, chilled, cut into cubes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
2-3 tablespoons cold water

1. Make the dough by mixing the flour and salt in a bowl. Add the butter and use your hands, or a pastry blender, to break in the butter until the mixture has a crumbly, cornmeal-like texture.
2. Mix the egg with 2 tablespoons of the water. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the beaten egg mixture, stirring the mixture until the dough holds together. If it’s not coming together easily, add the additional tablespoon of ice water.
3. Gather the dough into a ball and roll the dough on a lightly floured surface, adding additional flour only as necessary to keep the dough from sticking to the counter.
4. Once the dough is large enough so that it will cover the bottom of the pan and go up the sides, roll the dough around the rolling pin then unroll it over the tart pan. “Dock” the bottom of the pastry firmly with your fingertips a few times, pressing in to make indentations.

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