RECIPE: All-butter puff pastry makes this weeknight tart sing
Frozen, all-butter puff pastry is the ultimate luxury shortcut ingredient. Sure, the good stuff is expensive, but it can do what few other shortcuts can: make a quick, thrown-together dinner seem like it’s restaurant-quality. You can put just about anything on or in puff pastry, bake it in a hot oven, and you’ll be happy.
This time of year, I like to use just-coming-into-season cherry tomatoes as a base for a briny, umami-rich tart inspired by puttanesca sauce. To the tomatoes, I add pitted Kalamata olives, a tin of drained and chopped anchovies, and a handful of freshly grated Parmesan. (If I weren’t making a five-ingredient recipe, I’d also add capers, garlic, and red pepper flakes.) This potent melange gets scattered on the thawed pastry and baked in a hot oven. Leaving the tomatoes whole helps to prevent the sauce from sogging out the crust before it browns and crisps. They’ll burst when the tart is close to finished, forming a chunky, rustic, saucy topping for the pastry.
The rich, buttery pastry complements the bright, punchy flavors of the toppings for a flavor-packed but still balanced dish. And as long as you keep the underlying current of brininess intact, you can easily make this tart vegetarian-friendly. Simply swap in a tablespoon of capers for the tinned fish for a similar effect.
- 1 (14-ounce) sheet frozen puff pastry (preferably all-butter), thawed
- 2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes
- 1 cup pitted Kalamata olives
- 6 to 12 anchovies, drained and chopped, or 1 tablespoon drained capers, chopped*
- 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, divided
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Optional: Red pepper flakes and/or chopped fresh parsley
- On the side: Mixed green salad
- Heat oven to 425 degrees.
- While the oven is heating, press the puff pastry out onto a parchment- or silicone mat-lined baking sheet. Use a sharp knife to cut a border 1/2- to 1/4-inch inside the edge of the pastry. Try not to cut all the way through the pastry. Use a fork to generously dock the pastry inside the border.
- In a large bowl, toss the tomatoes, olives, anchovies and half of the cheese with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Spread evenly across the pastry, leaving the border clear.
- Bake until the pastry is well browned and the tomatoes have burst, 20 to 25 minutes. Top with the remaining cheese and another drizzle of oil. Top with red pepper flakes and parsley, if desired. Serve with salad on the side. Serves 4.
- *This recipe works with a range of anchovies, which you can adjust depending on how much you like their flavor. If you’d prefer to make this tart vegetarian, use capers.
Nutritional information
Per serving: Per serving: 752 calories (percent of calories from fat, 66), 13 grams protein, 52 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams fiber, 56 grams total fat (9 grams saturated), 15 milligrams cholesterol, 690 milligrams sodium.Read more stories like this by liking Atlanta Restaurant Scene on Facebook, following @ATLDiningNews on Twitter and @ajcdining on Instagram.
