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Tomato Crostada

Summer Tomato Crostata

Summer's Tomatoes shine in this easy to prepare crostata.  The crust is tender, almost puff pasty like, thanks to the yogurt.  The tomatoes burst with flavour on a bed of cheeses, herbs and chilli flakes.  Perfect for lunch or dinner, hot or room temperature. Makes a wonderful appetizer as well.

Ingredients

Crust

  • 1 1/4 cup unbleached AP flour
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp fresh chopped thyme
  • 8 tbsp 1 stick frozen unsalted butter
  • 1/4 cup plain greek yogurt
  • 1/4 cup ice cold water
  • 2 tsp lemon juice

Filling

  • 1/2 cup goat cheese softened to room temperature
  • 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese I just use 'pizza' mozzarella
  • 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese fresh is best
  • 2 tsp olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • 1 tsp fresh thyme chopped
  • 1 tsp hot pepper flakes
  • 1.5 lb or so fresh tomatoes sliced in 1/4" slices
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tbsp fresh thyme or basil chiffonade'ed
  • Maldon finishing salt for the crust

Instructions

Crust

  1. Add the flour and 1/4 tsp salt to a bowl. Whisk to combine. Add 2 tsp fresh chopped thyme.
  2. With the large holes of a grater, grate the butter stick into the flour. Mix gently with your fingers until mixture resembles coarse meal.
  3. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the yogurt, water and lemon juice. Pour this over the flour mixture and use your hands or a wooden spoon to form the dough into a ball. Flatten slightly and wrap in plastic wrap. Place in the freezer for 20 minutes.

Filling

  1. Whisk together the olive and garlic cloves in a small bowl.
  2. In a separate bowl, combine the three cheeses and then add the olive oil mixture. Stir in the thyme and hot pepper flakes. Refrigerate till ready to use.

Assemble

  1. Preheat the oven to 400F. Remove the dough from the freezer.
  2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
  3. On a well floured surface, roll out the dough into a 12 inch circle, trimming the edges to clean it up. Transfer the dough to the parchment lined baking sheet.
  4. Leaving a 2 inch border untouched, spread the cheese mixture evenly over the dough. Arrange the tomatoes over the cheese in a pleasing pattern, overlapping slightly to fit them all in. Then drizzle 1 tsp of olive oil over the top. Sprinkle with the fresh thyme and/or basil.
  5. Fold the edges of the dough in and over the filling, pleating to make it lay nicely.
  6. Whisk together the egg and 1 tsp water. Brush this over the crust. Sprinkle the edges with the finishing salt.
  7. Bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese is puffed and crust is golden brown.

Recipe Notes

Let it cool just a touch before cutting into it, allowing it to set. This also tastes lovely at room temperature. It even tastes good cold! You can use a variety of tomatoes for this tart: look for heirloom, cherry, roma, grape, etc.