Tomato Bechamel Tart
An Ombre of cherry tomatoes in every color on top of a pate brisee with creamy cheese bechamel and chiles.
Equipment
- Tart Shell, I used an 11 inch, but you can do any size or depth, or free form.
Ingredients
For the Pate Brisee Tart Shell - use the James Beard recipe linked above
For the Bechamel
- 4 cups Milk
- ½ cup Butter
- ½ cups All purpose flour
- Pinch Nutmeg
- Pinch Salt
- ¼ tsp Red pepper flakes
- 1 cup Grated Parmiggiano-Reggiano
- 5 small Calabrian chiles or Thai Bird chiles, seeded & chopped
- Handful Basil leaves, chopped
For the Tomatoes
- 1 Quart Colorful tomatoes, cherry or grape for this style -chopped in half across.
Instructions
For the Tart Shell
- After you refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes, roll it out slightly larger than your tart tin if using one. Gently lay the rolled out dough into the greased tin, and carefully press the dough into the grooves on the side of the pan. You can allow a little extra thickness towards the tops of the sides, and then slice off the excess with a knife. Refrigerate the tart shell until needed.
For the Bechamel
- Warm the milk over medium-low heat, allowing it to stay just beneath a boil.
- Whisk the flour into a pan of melted butter over medium heat. Once incorporated, add the milk into the butter-flour pan, whisking all the while.
- Keep stirring steadily with a big whisk for about 10-15 minutes, or until the bechemel will thickens.
- Lower the heat and add the nutmeg, salt and pepper, followed by the cheese. Once incorporated, take off of the heat and mix in the chopped chiles and basil and any additional red pepper flake needed. Set aside to cool completely.
To Assemble the Tart
- Preheat the oven to 375 degees.
- Pour the cooled bechamel into the tart shell and smooth out evenly.
- Place the tomatoes (insides down/skins up) evenly across the tart. If using the cherry/grape tomatoes, make sure they are close together. I decided on shading colors, but you can distribute the colors in any way you like best, if using colorful tomatoes.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes, until the tomatoes have wrinkled a bit and the tart dough has baked all the way through.
- Allow the tomato tart to cool on a wire rack. When ready (if using a tart tin), place the tin on an object at least 6 inches high. Slowly loosen the ring and remove it from the tart. You can leave the tart on the metal base and allow to cool or refrigerate for up to five days.
Notes
- When forming the tart shell dough into the tin, you can slice the excess off and then gently push a tiny bit from the sides so a little bit arises evenly at the tips of the tart pan sides. I find it shrinks when baking so this keeps things even.
- You can just as easily use regular size tomatoes and place then sliced on the top of the bechamel. I just loved the look of the cherry tomatoes, so that is why they require slicing in half and lining up face down.
- You can also add more herbs on the top of the tart -- I wanted the bechamel to spruce up a bit in flavor, so I added the chiles and basil. You can get creative and add any complimentary flavor you like. Enjoy tomatoes this summer!