Heirloom Cherry Tomato and Goat Cheese Tart

Last week, our friend - who lives in Israel - was home visiting. Her and Z met in high school, so she's been a part of his life - and now, my life - for quite a few years. When we heard she was coming to town, we immediately made plans to get together. We decided to invite her to our house for dinner, drinks and lots of catching up.

A few days before she came over, Z and I went grocery shopping at Trader Joe's, and purchased these beautiful heirloom cherry tomatoes. When I was planning what to make for dinner, I knew I needed to incorporate these beauties into whatever I created.

Heirloom Cherry Tomato and Goat Cheese Tart

Yields: 4 servings

-1 cup heirloom cherry tomatoes, halved

-1 sheet (about 8 oz.) frozen puff pastry, thawed 

-Extra virgin olive oil

-2 tsp. minced garlic

-Salt and pepper

-Herbed goat cheese, crumbled

Directions:
1.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place thawed puff pastry on a lightly greased baking sheet; score the pastry in several places with a fork, leaving the outer edges un-touched.
2.) In a saucepan, heat olive oil and garlic on medium heat for about 30 seconds. Brush oil and garlic mixture over the puff pastry.
3.) Place the halved heirloom tomatoes flat-side down over the oiled pastry (I color-coordinated my tomatoes...but you don't have to). Season lightly with salt and pepper; sprinkle goat cheese over the tomatoes.
4.) Bake the pastry for 15-20 minutes, or until dough is golden brown and edges of tomatoes begin to darken.

This ended up being a simple, elegant and gorgeous dish. I served it with a simple arugula salad and some sliced baguette with dipping oil. Although the tomatoes caused some more "wetness" than I preferred, this tart was still a success in my book. And it provided a great way to enjoy the flavors of tomatoes...am I the only one thinks tomatoes taste better during the warmer months?

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