In case you were wondering, I did not fall off the face of the earth. I did however spend time this summer with family in Oregon, the place my grandmother has always called god's country, and in the French Alps, where we relaxed in hammocks under the trees at my husband's family's weekend house.
Firsts for me this summer were a visit to Provence where we enjoyed hiking with friends, a lunch stop and walk around the legendary Gigondas wine region, and buying a mixed case of organic wine from a local family owned and operated winery. At the end of our stay in France we spent one week in a quaint little coastal town in Brittany on France's west coast. We ate like kings, enjoyed time with family, and played and lounged on the beach (for the record, I do not play on the beach. I lay under an umbrella and read.)
While I was away I spent a scant amount of time in the kitchen. My go-to meals were homemade pizza and all different combinations of rice salad. This Tomato Tart with Phyllo Dough was a stand out. Really really delicious. Served with a green salad, it's the perfect summer meal.
The challenge I had with it was getting the tomatoes sliced thin enough. I was using my mother-in-law's knives that are somewhat neglected in the sharpening department; even though I was afraid that the dough might suffer from excess moisture of tomatoes sliced a bit too thick, it didn't. The phyllo dough was crisp and the tomatoes were the ideal complement to the cheese tucked inside each layer of dough.
I hope your summer adventures have brought you fun, good memories, and plenty of rest and relaxation.
Here's to getting back in the kitchen.
Tomato Tart with Phyllo Dough
Adapted from Sunset Fast and Fresh
10 sheets of phyllo dough, thawed
5T butter, melted
8T grated parmesan cheese, divided
1c very thinly sliced onion
1c shredded mozzarella cheese
6-8 roma tomatoes (depending on size), cut into 1/8-in. thick slices
1T fresh lemon thyme (or regular thyme)
salt and pepper
1. Preheat oven to 375F or 190C.
2. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and lightly oil the paper.
3. Lay 2 sheets of phyllo on paper and brush lightly with a little melted butter. Sprinkle all over with 1T parmesan. Repeat layering 4 more times (phyllo, butter, parmesan), pressing the sheets firmly so they stick to the sheets below.
4. For the final layer: brush with remaining butter and sprinkle remaining 1T parmesan. Scatter onion slices across, top with mozzarella, and arrange tomato slices in a single layer, overlapping slightly. Sprinkle with thyme and salt and pepper to taste.
5. Bake 30-40 minutes until golden brown. Cool 10 minutes, then serve.
