If you know me well, you know I am all for any food that involves a combination of cheese and tomatoes. Pizza, caprese salad, lasagna, mozzarella sticks dipped in tomato sauce. Mmmm! I could go on and on. So, it’s no surprise my all-time favorite comfort food is this tomato tart. It is basically a glorified pizza pie with garlic deliciousness baked inside. My mom first introduced me to the dish, and since then it has been a dish that I have enjoyed and requested for years. But, it wasn’t really until last year that I started experimenting and “perfecting” the recipe. Now, after sharing many snaps of my progress on Instagram stories, I’m finally sharing my official tasty tomato tart recipe.

If you’re making this for the first time, you should also be prepared for the smell of garlic and cheese to takeover and make your mouth water!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Head of Garlic
• 3 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 Pillsbury Pie Crust
• 1 Cup Fontina Cheese, shredded
• 3/4 Cup Havarti Cheese, shredded
• 4 Vine-Ripened Tomatoes
• Fresh basil
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

TIP: For the cheese, 8 ounces is the equivalent of one cup.

DIRECTIONS

1. Slice tomatoes and lay them on a wood cutting board (back-up option: paper towels) to absorb some of the juices. Sprinkle salt, pepper and basil on them. I use about one teaspoon of each seasoning, but adjust as needed for your tastebuds! Note: This step is especially important to do first. The tart will turn out soggy if you slice the tomatoes and immediately put them in the tart.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place garlic in a piece of aluminum foil. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Wrap up garlic in the foil and place it in the oven. Bake for 45 minutes. The head of garlic should be soft and golden brown. Remove from oven; set aside. Raise oven temperature to 450 degrees.
3. Over a tart pan, lay down the pie crust (back-up option: a pie pan) and press the dough into the corners. Open the head of garlic. Squeeze garlic out of all the bulbs and onto the pie crust. Use the back of a spoon to spread around the garlic. Bake crust for 10 minutes, until golden brown.
4. Mix cheeses in a bowl. Sprinkle one third of the cheese on top of the crust. Lay the tomatoes on top of the cheese. Add another layer of cheese, and then another layer of tomatoes. Finally, sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Reduce temperature to 400 degrees and bake for about 45 minutes, when crust and cheese are golden. Cool for 15 minutes, and serve warm.

Total time: 2 hours

Yields: 8 servings

To make a meal, we typically serve the tomato tart with red wine and a side of mixed greens and a light, vinaigrette dressing. Personally, the hardest part of making the tomato tart for me is waiting for it to cool down at the end because I want to dig on in. BUT, as someone who has impatiently dug in to the tart, the 15 minute cool down really does help the tart stick together. It makes it much easier to serve up that first piece without it falling apart.

I would love to hear if you have made tomato tart or something similar in your family. If it is not tomato tart, is there a dish that always gets devoured quickly when you make it? Let me know what that is in the comments!

Cheers!

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