Janet Telian’s tomato tart was legendary; a love letter to vine-ripened tomatoes1. As summer approached we would anticipate its arrival on the menu at her restaurant, The Savoy Cabbage, compulsively checking the street-facing menu to see whether she deemed the tomatoes ripe enough to warrant making puff pastry.
The little tarts above were made for a beach picnic and snapped up with devilled eggs to the sight of a peachy sunset. Slow-roasted tomato slices were on hand, single-bite servings were required and I was in the mood to channel Janet. Though she may have arched an eyebrow at my use of standard-issue tomatoes.
Heirloom tomatoes can take time so these little tarts serve us well when tomato season is not yet in full swing or there’s only access to a standard-issue variety, which can also offer up flavour if treated with love. When encouraged to ripen a little longer, liberated from their tough skin, seeded and gently roasted, they start to taste more like themselves.
The tomato tartlet
Have ready: two frozen butter puff pastry sheets of 22cm x 22cm, defrosted but kept cold and 8–12 standard issue tomatoes, peeled and seeded and slow roasted. Break one egg into a bowl, add a pinch of salt and whisk well.
Lay out the pastry sheet on a lightly floured board and punch out circles with a round 5cm diameter cookie cutter. Brush each pastry round with the egg wash and prick with a fork. Top each with a scant quarter teaspoon of finely-grated Parmesan. Top each round with a slow-roast tomato quarter (if the cookie cutter is more like 6cm in diameter it can take two per tart). Arrange on a baking sheet with at least 2cm space between each one, cover with clingwrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 220°C with the rack in the middle. Bake the trays of tarts for about 10 minutes or until the pastry is puffed and golden. As soon as the tarts come out of the oven, transfer to a cooling rack. They are just right as is but for festive red and green can take a sprinkling of finely-sliced chives as above.
For the slow-roast method click the link below.
Edited on 13 December 2024.
The Savoy Cabbage Cookbook by Janet Telian (Cape Town: Spearhead, 2002)