Tomato caramelised onion goats cheese tart, one of my favourite things to bake in summer.
Jump to RecipeThe flaky puff pastry gives such a lovely texture when paired with the juicy jammy tomatoes.
Caramelising the red onion with balsamic vinegar and mixing it with the soft goats cheese and herbs adds a hidden layer of flavour underneath the beautifully ripe and juicy tomatoes.
I used a variety of heirloom tomatoes so it made a really pretty colourful tart, full of flavour.
Its so summery and a real favourite in my house.
It is really quick and easy to prepare, just the time is needed to caramelise the onion and put it together.
I used ready made puff pastry from the supermarket to save time. I enjoy making puff pastry at home but honestly its the one thing i tend to buy rather than making it my self.
I make this tart every year, you can roll the puff pastry out into a circle like above or a rectangle like the photo below, what ever you like best. You can also add thinly sliced courgettes (zucchini) if you like.
I tend to use a selection of herbs, usually thyme or oregano or basil. If the fennel blossom is out i will sometimes sprinkle that on too. The thing i love about this tart is, once you have the basics of the goats cheese and caramelised onion you can really adapt it to what ever you like best, whether that be mixing tomatoes and courgettes or adding some aubergine.
Edd kimber also made a really yummy looking tomato galette with sesame crusted shortcrust pastry that looked really good.
Tomato caramelised onion and goats cheese tart
This tomato caramelised onion and goats cheese tart is very quick to prepare and its adaptable. You can add garlic, different herbs, or a mix of tomatoes and courgettes.
I find the varieties of tomatoes i buy are bred to have less seeds and liquid so i don’t bother removing them as they don’t make the tart soggy, If you find the variety of tomatoes you use have a lot of seeds or moisture you can remove them first.
If you are based in the uk, then you might have heard of isle of white tomatoes, or the tomato stall. That is where i get mine from.
I used some everything bagel seasoning i purchased on amazon. I loved the flavour it added, but if you don’t have any it will be fine without it.
It is something that i had not seen in shops here, i saw someone i follow on Instagram using it on a potato and onion galette and thought it sounded wonderful so i ordered some.
I used soft leafy thyme, if the thyme you use has woody hard stems then just use the leaves, and don’t tuck in whole sprigs.
tomato caramelised onion and goats cheese tart
Ingredients
Caramelised onion goats cheese layer
- 1 red onion
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp butter optional use more olive oil if not using
- 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
- 150 g soft goats cheese one tub or log
- leaves from 3 sprigs of thyme (about a tsp)
- salt and freshly cracked black pepper
Tart
- 1 kg tomatoes (ripe in a variety of shapes and sizes and colours)
- fresh thyme
- 1 block of puff pastry
- salt pepper
- 1 egg for egg wash
- everything bagel seasoning for pastry optional
Instructions
Caramelised onions
- peel the skin off the onion and cut the ends off then cut the onion in half and thinly slice it into strips, heat the olive oil and butter in a wide pan and add the onions and sautee for a few minutes, stirring to evenly colour the onions. Add a pinch of salt.
- when the onions are soft and have a lovely caramelised appearance add a good splash of balsamic vinegar and reduce for a few more minutes. Be careful that the pan does not spit when you add the balsamic vinegar. remove from the pan and add to a bowl to cool
- Mix in the thyme, soft goats cheese and season with black pepper and some more salt,
- Preheat the oven to 180c/350f
- slice the tomatoes, you may not need all of the 1kg i suggested it depends what variety you use and how you slice them. I kept some of the small piccolo cherry tomatoes whole,
- Roll out the block of puff pastry on a lightly floured surface into a large circle or rectangle, it needs to be around 4-5 mm thick. you can also use a pack of ready rolled puff pastry.
- Place the rolled out pastry onto some baking paper. Spread the onion and goats cheese filling onto the middle of the tart leaving space round the edge to allow you to fold the edges over.
- Arrange the sliced tomatoes on top, then fold the edges over to seal the tart.
- Brush the folded over edge with a beaten egg and add salt and pepper and some more thyme or add some everything bagel seasoning onto the pastry.
- Arrange some more thyme sprigs onto the tart tucked into the tomatoes, then add some flaked salt and cracked black pepper.
- Bake the tart for about 40/45 minutes until the pastry is golden and puffed up.
- Serve warm or chilled
It has been a very long time since i shared a recipe for puff pastry if you wanted to make your own but there is one here
I love the combination of tomatoes with goats cheese and a few summers ago i shared salad recipe with it here
