Puff Pastry Tomato Tart

This Puff Pastry Tomato Tart recipe is super easy and delicious. Great as an appetizer, brunch snack and more – the flaky pastry crust is stuffed with fresh tomatoes, cheese and herbs and packs a delicious crunch!

This tomato tart with puff pastry uses only 8 ingredients and is ready in about 30 minutes. The flaky pastry crust paired with cheese, herbs and tomatoes is a delicious dish that anyone can make.

You can make all kinds of tarts with puff pastry dough such as these mushroom tarts. Or, you can use pastry shells to make tarts like this cheddar broccoli tart.

You don’t need to be a chef or baker extraordinaire to make these. They’re perfect for serving up at brunches as an appetizer or even for a light lunch or dinner.

What Makes this Tomato Puff Pastry Tart So Great?

• Fast to make. With only 8 ingredients you can bake this up in about 30 minutes.
• Easy to customize. Easily change up the flavors by switching out the type of cheese or topping used.
• Versatile. You can serve this an appetizer, for brunch, lunch or even as a light dinner.

Ingredients

• Frozen Puff Pastry – you can make your own puff pastry but it is a lot of work and if you are looking for quick, frozen works just as well.
• Flour – you don’t need much, it is only used for dusting the table so the pastry doesn’t stick when rolling.
• Mozzarella Cheese – a classic topping for any baked Italian dish but fontina, goat cheese, brie, provolone… pretty much any cheese will work.
• Parmesan Cheese – fresh parmesan cheese makes all the difference giving the tart a little saltiness.
• Oregano – because what great Italian tomato dish doesn’t use this delicious herb.
• Fresh Tomatoes – Hot house tomatoes on the vine or heirloom tomatoes are best.
• Egg – used to baste the puff pastry edges to give the crust a golden brown glow.
• Basil Leaves – fresh basil is the perfect complement to tomato dishes added in vibrant slighly sweet and spicy herbal flavor.
• Salt and Pepper – optional; to taste

Variations

• Switch up the cheese – trade the mozzarella for crumbled feta cheese or fontina. Trade the parmesan for goat cheese or Boursin.
• Make individual tarts – instead of rolling the puff pastry into one large tart and cutting into slices, make individual tarts before baking.
• Thicker crust – if you prefer a thick crust, try a pie pastry instead of a puff pastry.
• Add oil and balsamic– add some additional flavor by drizzling olive oil and balsamic glaze over the tart sparingly.
• Add more toppings – mushrooms, diced eggplant or zucchini, or meats like crumbled sausage take this tart closer to becoming a pizza but no harm in that!

How to make tomato basil tarts

Use these easy step-by-step instructions to bake up your own version of this tomato tart recipe.

1. Preheat over to 400°F.
2. Dust the counter or surface you are working on with flour and roll the puff pastry out to a 10×15 inch rectangle. It should be thin enough to almost see through.
3. Move the puff pastry to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. The easiest way to do this is to gently fold the rolled pastry into 3 to lift the pastry onto the baking sheet and then unfold.
4. Roll the edges in and gently pinch them up so that you have a frame to hold your fillings.

5. Evenly sprinkle mozzarella, parmesan and then oregano onto the puff pastry.
6. Thinly slice tomatoes and lay them on top of the cheese without allowing them to overlap.

7. In a small bowl, whisk your egg and then using a brush baste the edges of the puff pastry with the egg wash.
8. Bake for 20 minutes at 400°F. Remove the tart from the oven when the puff pastry has started to brown.
9. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and place basil leaves on top before serving.

Tips

• Tomato Placement – make sure that you thinly slice your tomatoes and lay them on the puff pastry so that they are not overlapping. This allows just the right amount of tomato flavor in each bite.
• Proper thickness – you want the puff pastry to be thin enough that you can almost see through the dough when rolled. This will ensure a crunchy crust. If you like a thicker crust, then don’t roll it as thin or use pie pastry instead.
• Fold the edges – to prevent your toppings from sliding off the edge of the pastry, pinch the edges upwards to create a little ridge.

Storage

You can store this tart in the refrigerator for about 3 days as long in an airtight container. Any longer than that and the puff pastry can get soggy and tomatoes can start to go bad.

The puff pastry will soften in the fridge so to crisp it back up I recommend putting it back in the oven again for about 8-10 minutes so it dries out again and gets nice and crunchy.

If you want to freeze this tart, wait until the tart completely cools then tightly wrap their in aluminium foil and then store in a tightly sealed container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight, or warm the tart in the oven.