Tina: Puff pastry is such an amazing thing! Honestly, I’d never try making it myself because it takes a lot of time. It’s basically made of loads of dough and butter, and you have to do it at just the right temperature. But luckily, you don’t have to go through all that trouble – you can grab some puff pastry from the freezer section (look for the ones with natural ingredients if you can), and it’s pretty easy to work with.
These mini tarts with fresh tomatoes and arugula pesto make a super tasty and light appetizer, whether you’re serving guests or just treating yourself. It’s a win-win, really.
Oh, and here’s a handy tip: Use scissors instead of a knife when chopping chives. It makes the job way easier!
Recipe: Fresh Tomato Tarts
Course: Appetizers, Baking6
tartsThese fresh tomato salad and arugula pesto tarts make a super tasty and light appetizer, whether you’re serving guests or just treating yourself. It’s a win-win, really.
Ingredients
- Arugula pesto
2 ½ cups 2 ½ packed arugula
1 cup 1 extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup 1 shredded Parmesan
⅓ cup ⅓ raw almonds
1 tablespoon 1 lemon zest
1 clove 1 garlic, chopped
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- Tomato salad
1 package 1 cherry tomatoes, or 2-3 big ones cut into smaller bites
1½ tablespoons 1½ olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
- Tart
1 package 1 puff pastry
1 1 egg, beaten
¼ cup ¼ milk
- Garnish
Chives, chopped
Directions
- Arugula pesto
- Toss all the arugula pesto ingredients in a food chopper and blend until finely chopped.
- Tomato salad
- Toss the tomato salad ingredients together in a small bowl
- Tart
- Take the puff pastry out of the freezer and transfer to your refrigerator to defrost at least 45 min before you are going to use it, or better yet the day before.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
- Unfold the dough on a lightly floured surface and use a dough roller that is also lightly floured to carefully roll out the dough until flattened. If the dough starts cracking, it might still be too cold, so allow it to reach room temperature before rolling it out of the package. Usually the puff pastry comes in a square, but mine came as a circle (I bought this brand because it is made with only natural ingredients).
- You can cut the dough as you like. I prefer the small squares , which are easier to serve, but rectangular or round tarts are absolutely beautiful. To create a border around the dough, poke with a fork in the middle and along the edge of where you want your border. See the pictured instructions. (The edges actually didn’t work for me this time, but I admit I forgot to brush the pastry edges; if it doesn’t work, it is no big deal – they are still going to be tasty).
- Mix the egg and milk together and brush the puff pastry edges with the egg mixture. Place the pastry on a baking sheet and bake in the oven until the puff pastry turns golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and spread pesto on top, followed by the tomato salad. Sprinkle some chives on top for garnish.
- Enjoy immediately.
