Tomatoville

It is high season for tomatoes, and they are better this year than any time in modern memory.  The Romas are meaty and deep red, and all the other varieties from Cosmonaut Volkov to striped Germans are also big and tasty.  We have been making and freezing sauce every weekend, and making other delicious tomato dishes too.

Last week we made Granny's Tomato Tart.

The following recipe makes two of these tarts. We made only one.

For the crust:
2-1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
3 tablespoons semolina flour
1 tsp salt
12 Tb (1-1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter cut into 1/4 inch pieces
3 Tb chilled vegetable shortening
For the topping:
2 Tb Dijon mustard
8 oz Gruyère cheese, coarsely grated
12 to 14 ripe plum tomatoes, ends trimmed, very thinly sliced into rounds (we used three!)

1 tsp herbes de Provence (we used fresh thyme)
freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp salt or to taste

1. For tart crust: In food processor, combine flours and salt. Pulse to combine. Add butter and shortening and pulse 5 seconds.  Pulsing, add 4-8 Tb ice water, until holds together.  Shape into a ball.
2. For two tarts, divide in half and wrap each in plastic wrap, and press into disks. For one tart, wrap in plastic in one disk. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes before rolling out.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Roll out dough into two 9-inch disks or one 10-by-16 inch rectangle 1/8-inch thick.  Transfer to a baking sheet and crimp edges 1/2 inch high.

Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Prick all over with a fork. Place parchment paper or foil on top and weigh down with pie weights or dried beans.

Bake until lightly brown, 10-15 minutes. Remove foil and weights from dough, and continue to bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes.

Remove from oven and set aside to cool. Do not turn off oven.
4. For topping.

Spread mustard thinly over bottom of cooled shell. Scatter evenly with cheese.

Arrange tomatoes in even, slightly overlapping rows. Sprinkle with herbs, and season to taste with pepper. Bake until tomatoes begin to shrivel and cheese melts, 10-12 minutes. Sprinkle with salt, serve hot or at room temperature.  Cut into wedges and enjoy.  Also good as leftovers.

This afternoon we made a different tomato lunch (and made it again the next day.)

Pan Bagnat with Grilled Peppers and Basil Vinaigrette

For the peppers:
2 large red bell peppers - quartered, seeds and veins removed
1 tsp olive oil

For the vinaigrette:
12 large basil leaves
2 Tb aged Balsamic or red wine vinegar
6 Tb extra virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove peeled
1/4 tsp sea salt
freshly ground pepper
1 half oven dried tomato chopped coarsely (secret ingredient!)

For the sandwich:
1/3 cup pitted Niçoise or Kalamata olives coarsely chopped
1 Tb capers drained and chopped
4 baguette or ciabatta rolls (or ciabatta loaf)
4 scallions - white and pale green part cut into 1/8" slices
4 hard-boiled eggs - shelled and cut into 1/4" slices
2 medium ripe tomatoes - cut into 1/4 inch slices
1/2 seedless cucumber - cut into 1/8" slices (can be omitted for cucumber-phobes)
sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Preheat broiler (or grill).
Brush the peppers with oil and set aside on a tray. When grill is ready, place them skin side to the heat and grill until charred, about 4-5 minutes. Turn peppers and grill on other side until well charred, 3-4 minutes. Transfer to a tray and set aside.

For the vinaigrette: place all ingredients in food processor and process until basil is very finely chopped and vinaigrette is smooth. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

In a small bowl mix the olive and capers.

Cut rolls in half. Light toast cut side under broiler or on grill. Drizzle both sides of the rolls with two thirds of the vinaigrette to soak the bread. (This is the secret ingredient!)  Top the bottom of each roll with the grilled peppers, olive/caper mixture, scallions, and egg slices.  Drizzle with the remainder of the vinaigrette. Top with tomato and cucumber slices. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Finish with the top-side of the rolls, press slightly with your hand, and cut sandwiches in half.

Serve with a leafy green salad with mustard vinaigrette (optional).  Also plenty of napkins (required).

Makes 4 sandwiches.