Tomato Tart

Way back in March, my father and I planted three tomato plants in my backyard. Now, after spending a couple of weeks eating tomatoes that were not exactly 'ripe' but far too tempting to pass up, I am flush with ripe, gorgeous home-grown tomatoes.
I wanted to do something 'fancy' with them, and I thought a savory tart would be just the thing.

Now, I have never made a savory tart before, so this was an adventure. But, I'm tired of being afraid of pastry crust, and since there was no pressure, as I was making it just for my own enjoyment, I felt courageous.

And let me tell you...
... this is hands down one of the best things I have ever made.

There is a secret layer of Dijon mustard on the bottom, which is absolutely perfect. I used goat cheese and thyme to also accompany the tomatoes, and I was, in particular, shocked at how perfect the thyme was. And add to the mix perfect tomatoes...
and you're in for a summer treat.

Start with your tomatoes. One worry was that the tomatoes were going to make the crust soggy, so I took a tip from the Oliver, and salted the tomatoes for about 15-20 minutes before hand. You just slice them up and put them in a colander.
Sprinkle with salt, and let sit for 15-20 minutes. This will cause the excess liquid to drain away and intensify the flavor.
Next, tart dough. This is a pretty easy, pretty forgiving tart dough. Start with your flour and salt in a bowl. Add the butter.
Then pulse 10-15 times until the mixture looks crumbly and feels like cornmeal.
Mix together 1 egg and 2 tablespoons of ice water, and pour it into a well in the dry ingredients.
Mix, until the dough holds together. If it doesn't come together easy, as mine didn't, add another tablespoon of ice water.
Gather the dough into a ball, and put it on a lightly floured surface.

Roll out the dough so it is large enough to cover the bottom of the pan and go up the sides.
Roll the dough over the pin, and unroll it into the pan. Gently nudge the dough, being careful not to stretch it. And, press the dough firmly into the indentations.
Cut off the excess dough, and save for a mini-tart later!
Now... time for the Dijon. It really makes such a difference.
Spread a good layer of Dijon over the bottom. And let it dry out a couple of minutes.
Arrange the tomatoes over the mustard. Try to make it pretty. And, drizzle olive oil over top.
Now for the fresh herbs.
Like I said, the thyme was just right.
Next... goat cheese.
Arrange the goat cheese on top. And, sprinkle with more herbs.
Now, the recipe says if you want, you can drizzle honey over it. So I did on half of it, just to see. Unfortunately, I forgot which half I did it on, and at the end, I couldn't actually detect a difference in flavor between either side. I think my honey was too whimpy.
Bake for 30 minutes or so, until the dough is cooked and the cheese is nicely browned.
How completely gorgeous is this?
And it tastes just as good.

French Tomato Tart (from David Lebowitz)
One 9-10 inch tart pan

Ingredients:
One unbaked tart dough (recipe to follow)
Dijon or whole-grain mustard
2-3 large ripe tomatoes (or 6-7 small tomatoes)*
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons freshly chopped herbs, such as thyme, chives, chervil, or tarragon
8 ounces fresh or slightly aged goat cheese, sliced into rounds**
Optional: 1 1/2 tablespoons flavorful honey

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

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425.

Slice tomatoes and set in a colander. Sprinkle with salt, and let excess liquid drain for 15-20 minutes.****

For the dough*****:
Mix the flour and salt in the bowl of your food processor. Add the butter, and pulse 10-15 times, or until the mixture has a crumbly, cornmeal-like texture.

Mix the egg with 2 tablespoons of 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 its not coming together easily, add the additional tablespoon of ice water.

Gather the dough into a ball and roll it our on a lightly floured surface, adding addition flour only as necessary to keep the dough from sticking to the counter.

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.

For tart:
Sread an even layer of mustard over the bottom (the amount you would put on a sandwich) and let sit a few minutes to dry out.

Arrange tomatoes in a single, even layer. Drizzle the olive oil over top.

Sprinkle with fresh chopped herbs, then arrange slices of goat cheese on top. Add some more fresh herbs, then drizzle with honey, if using.

Bake the tart for 30 minutes or so, until the dough is cooked, the tomatoes are tender, and the cheese on top is nicely browned.

*This is what it took me
**You could use any good melting cheese you like, comte, fontina, etc.
***I think this about 9 tablespoons
****This isn't in Lebowitz's recipe, but it prevents the crust from getting soggy. In fact, when I had the tart the next day, it still wasn't soggy. So, I think this method is pretty effective.
*****I chose to do the first parts of the dough in the food processor, but you could do it by hand, cutting in the butter with a pastry blender or fork if you like.

Vegetarian chili you will crave

I'm pretty sure that this chili is the stuff cravings are made out of.
Once again, the Oliver does not disappoint. The secret ingredient? Roasted sweet potatoes. It gives the chili a touch of sweetness that lightens everything up. And, the cinnamon, cumin, and cayenne don't hurt either.

I could (read: did) eat bowl after bowl of this. It is warm and satisfying, but not heavy. Really, just a perfect vegetarian chili.

It was so easy to make, which also doesn't hurt. Start by peeling and chopping up your sweet potatoes, into about 1/2 inch dice. Toss them with some olive oil, salt, pepper, and a pinch of the warm spices.
While those are roasting, chop up some pretty bell peppers and onion, and toss them in a Dutch oven with some olive oil.
Once those have browned, add your cinnamon, cumin, cayenne, and some finely diced hot peppers (I used serano).
Work that all together.
Then, add your chopped tomatoes and beans.
Let that yum up for a bit, and then add in those glorious sweet potatoes right at the end.
And, you are done!
Get ready for the cravings to begin.

Vegetarian Chili (from theoliver)
Ingredients:
2 medium-sized sweet potatoes (about 500 g)
1/2 - 1 level teaspoon cayenne pepper, plus extra for sprinkling (1 tsp makes it very spicy)
1 heaped teaspoon ground cumin, plus extra for sprinkling
1 level teaspoon ground cinnamon, plus extra for sprinkling
olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 onion
1 red pepper
1 yellow pepper
(1 bunch fresh coriander)*
1 red chili
1 green chili
2 cloves of garlic
2 14oz tins of beans- try kidney, chickpea, pinto, cannellini
2 14oz tins of chopped tomatoes

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400. Peel the sweet potatoes and cut into bite-sized chunks [about 1/2-3/4 inch dice should do it, they shrink quite a bit]. Sprinkle with a pinch of cayenne, cumin, and cinnamon, drizzle with olive oil and scatter with a pinch of salt and pepper. Toss to coat, then put them on a baking tray. Cook for about 40 minutes until soft and golden.**

Peel and roughly chop the onion. Halve, deseed, and roughly chop the pepper. Deseed and finely chop the chilis. Peel and finely chop the garlic.

Put a large pan on a medium*** heat and add a couple of glugs of olive oil. Add the onion and peppers, cook for 5 minutes. Add the garlic, cook for 30 seconds more. Add the chili and spices, and cook for another 5-10 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes.

Drain the cans of beans, then add them and the tomatoes to the pan. Stir well and bring to a boil, the reduce to a medium-low heat and leave to tick away for 25-30 minutes. Add a splash of water if it gets a bit thick.

Get the roasted sweet potatoes out of the oven and stir them through your chili. Taste and season with salt and pepper, if needed.

Makes 4-6 servings.

*Obviously, I omitted this because I think cordiander tastes awful. But, you could substitute parsley instead.
**You may want to make extra of these, because they are so delicious there is no way you can resist snacking on them.
***I think medium heat is better if you are using a Dutch oven, but use medium-high heat if you are not.

Pappa al Pomodoro

The fall is in full swing here in southern California: temperatures are dipping all the way down into the 60s. The 60s!
In other words... it is time for soup!

And, I must say, I started the soup season with a bang: this Pappa al Pomodoro from the Oliver is like comfort in a bowl. I literally had to hold myself back from eating all of it in one sitting.

Pappa al Pomodoro is a traditional tomato-bread soup from Tuscany. Instead of using cream to thicken it, you use day-old bread. This results in a lovely, thick consistency, which you want in the fall; but, you don't have to add cream, which is always a plus for everyday/non-fancy occasion soups.

As ever, the Oliver sticks with basic ingredients: tomatoes, basil, garlic, bread, and water, and makes it magical. The key to the magic this time is roasting some cherry tomatoes with basil and garlic beforehand, and then adding them to the soup.
This gives the soup such depth and really intensifies the tomato-basil flavor.

So, start by pricking some cherry tomatoes.
Then toss them with some basil, garlic, olive oil, salt, and pepper.
Roast them until the skins start popping, about 20 minutes.
In the meantime, get some more garlic sauteing in your Dutch oven, with the basil stems, and some olive oil. Who knew you could use basil stems?
Add in a can of whole plum tomatoes.
Then add some water, and bring that to a simmer.
Now, time for the thickener! I used a loaf of Pain Rustique from Trader Joe's, which I had let sit out for 2 days. Tear it into pieces. And, enjoy it.
Time to add the bread to the soup.
Also add in a bunch of basil. And add some salt and pepper, to taste.
Let that all yum up over low heat for about 10 minutes. And then...

Time for those roasted tomatoes!
Just look at how gorgeous this is. You know it is going to be good.

At this point, you just need to adjust the water level to your taste. You want it to be thick, but still silky. I added about 1/2 cup more. But, really just add a bit and taste, until you are satisfied.
Remove it from the heat. Ladle it into your bowl and add some Parmesan cheese and some fresh basil.

Don't you just adore the fall?

Pappa al Pomodoro (from Jamie's Italy)
Ingredients:
1 lb ripe cherry tomatoes
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely sliced
a large bunch of fresh basil, leaves picked, stems finely chopped
the best extra virgin olive oil you can find
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 28 ounce can of plum tomatoes
about 1 lb or 2 large handfuls of stale good-quality bread

Directions:
Prick the cherry tomatoes and toss them on a baking sheet with one sliced clove of garlic and a quarter of the basil leaves. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook them in the oven at 350 for about 20 minutes, until the tomatoes are bursting out of their skins.

Heat a glug of olive oil in a Dutch oven and add the remaining garlic and basil stems. Stir around and gently fry for a minute, until softened. Add your canned tomatoes, then fill the can with water and add that. Break up the tomatoes with a spoon, bring to a boil, and simmer for 15 minutes.

Tear the bread up into thumb-sized pieces and add them to the pan. Mix well and season to taste. Tear in the basil leaves and let the soup sit on a low heat for 10 minutes. Add the roasted tomatoes, basil, garlic, and juices into the pan.

Give the soup a good stir. You're looking to achieve a thick, silky, porridgy texture, so feel free to adjust it with a little water. Then remove it from the heat and add 6 or 7 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Divide between bowls and served with a little extra basil.

Serves 4

Quinoa Tabbouleh

Quinoa is one of my favorite grains, mainly due to its fluffy (yet slightly crunchy) consistency , nutty flavor, and fantastic nutritional value. As a vegetarian, I'm always on the lookout for good protein soures. Quinoa has a 12%–18% protein content (compared to ~7% in rice) and has a full set of amino acids. And of course it's full of fiber and a good source of phosphorus, magnesium and iron. Awesome, no? And did I mention it only takes like 15 minutes to cook?
(Thanks, wikipedia, for all those factoids)

So getting on with this recipe: Quinoa Tabbouleh makes for a colorful, light, nutritious, and simple summer meal. I adapted the recipe below from The Kitchn.

Ingredients

1 cup dry quinoa
1 red onion
1 pint cherry tomatoes
2 cloves garlic
1 bunch flat-leaved parsley (about 3 cups, but I'm never very precise)
8 ounces feta
2 ears fresh corn
1/4 cup good extra-virgin olive oil
Juice from 1 lemon (+extra to taste)
salt and pepper to taste

When cooking à l'Emmanuelle, assembly details don't matter so much. So my instructions for this recipe? Cook the quinoa, the rest of the ingredients are raw (yes, even the corn, try it). Cut everything up, add a mixture of lemon juice and olive oil, and toss. Salt and pepper to taste.

You can explore with different ingredients. Try adding mint or basil, cucumber, maybe even some fresh fruit? I added corn to this recipe and thought it added a delightful sweetness to it.

With the entire salad assembled and tossed, the longer you let it sit, the more the flavors evolve and fuse together. I love making a large batch then eating it for lunch all week.

Enjoy!