Tarte fine à la tomate et au pistou

Name: Tarte fine à la tomate et au pistou
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 6

Main Serves 6 35 min

These individual tomato and herb tarts are a heavenly first course and take less than twenty minutes to make. The only drawback is that you may have to cook the 'tartes fines' in relays unless you have an large oven. They're as good cold as hot. An excellent light summer's lunch with a green salad (and perhaps a glass of dry white wine).

Ingredients

2 tbsp fresh basil, finely chopped
120ml olive oil
2 tbsp tomato purée
450g puff pastry
6 ripe medium-sized tomatoes
sugar
½ tsp fresh thyme leaves
12 extra basil leaves, roughly torn up
salt and pepper

Method

Prep time: 10 min

Cooking time: 25 min

Step 1
Preheat oven to 230°C/Gas 8.
Step 2
Mix the chopped basil with 1½ tablespoons of the olive oil and set aside for 5-10 minutes, then mix with the tomato purée.
Step 3
Roll out the puff pastry very thinly (it's probably easiest to do this in 2 halves) and cut out six 20cm diameter circles. Prick all over with a fork and lay them on oiled baking sheets.
Step 4
Spread the basil and tomato purée mixture over the circles, using a brush, leaving a 1cm border all the way round the edges.
Step 5
Slice the tomato rings on the pastry. Season with salt, pepper and a little sugar. Scatter over the thyme. Bake in the oven.
Step 6
After 5 minutes, brush the tarts generously with olive oil and return to the oven for a final 5-8 minutes until nicely browned. Serve immediately, scattered with a few torn up basil leaves.

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