Tomato and Cantal Tart

The title of this post is a lie. That is the correct title of the tart found in The Modern Baker which I continue to enjoy, but my tart was made with other cheeses. I went to Whole Foods in search of some cantal cheese, and they had none. What they did have was an incredibly helpful person at the cheese counter. I really should have learned his name. He offered me multiple samples of alternate cheeses, and when I was still unsure, he went in the back to grab a cheese reference book. Together, we looked at the description of cantal, and I really should have learned the title of that book. At any rate, the person whose name I don’t know read aloud from the book, with a title I don’t know, a description of cantal’s flavors. This book suggested that the flavor of cantal is best copied by blending laguiole and cheddar. Laguiole is an earthy, slightly salty and pleasantly pungent cheese, and a clothbound cheddar from Grafton Village lended a calmer milkiness with less of an edge. I was offered samples of each and was finally ready to make a decision. In the end, I spent an inordinate amount of time choosing some cheese for such a simple tart.

The no-roll, flaky dough as it’s called was made in a food processor, and it was patted into a tart pan. The dough was chilled in the pan overnight, and it could have sat in the refrigerator for a couple of days. Once I was ready to bake, some dijon mustard was spread on the bottom of the uncooked crust. The cheeses I selected were shredded, and half of the shredded pile was placed on the mustard. Sliced heirloom tomatoes went on the cheese, and the remaining cheese was placed on the tomatoes. Only black pepper seasoned the tart because Malgieri explains in the recipe that salt could cause the tomatoes to become watery while baking. The tart baked for about 30 minutes and then a little extra virgin olive oil was drizzled on top.

Before serving, fresh basil leaves were to be placed on the tart. You’ll want to let the tart cool some or the basil leaves will quickly turn brownish black. This tart of few ingredients is all about the ripeness and perfection of the tomatoes. The crust, baked to a barely-golden yet crisp state and the carefully selected cheeses were really there to accent the tomatoes. While I hesitated too long and clearly fretted about my final cheese decision, the kind man at Whole Foods said in an encouraging voice “you know what, the tart is going to be delicious.” And, you know what, he was right.