Tomato Crostata With Honey-Thyme Glaze

- Total Time
- 1 hour plus at least 2½ hours’ chilling
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 125grams all-purpose flour (about 1 cup), more for rolling out dough
- 75grams fine cornmeal (about ½ cup)
- ¼teaspoon fine sea salt
- 10tablespoons cold unsalted butter (1 stick plus 2 tablespoons), cut into small cubes
- 35grams grated extra-sharp Cheddar (about ½ cup)
- 1½pounds different-colored tomatoes, sliced ¼-inch thick (or halved if cherry or grape tomatoes)
- 1teaspoon kosher sea salt, plus a pinch
- 2tablespoons cider vinegar
- 1tablespoon honey
- ½bunch fresh thyme sprigs, plus 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
- 2tablespoons olive oil
- 3garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
- 65grams extra-sharp Cheddar, grated (about 1 cup)
- Black pepper, to taste
- 1large egg
- Flaky sea salt, like Maldon
For the Crust
For the Filling
Preparation
- Step 1
Make the crust: In a food processor, briefly pulse together flour, cornmeal and salt. Add butter and cheese and pulse until mixture forms chickpea-size pieces (3 to 5 one-second pulses). Add ice water 1 tablespoon at a time, up to 6 tablespoons, pulsing occasionally until mixture is just moist enough to hold together. Form dough into a ball, wrap with plastic and flatten into a disk. Refrigerate at least 2 hours.
- Step 2
Meanwhile, line a rimmed baking sheet with a double layer of paper towels. Spread out tomato slices in a single layer. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt and let sit for at least 1 hour and up to 3 hours.
- Step 3
In a skillet over medium heat, combine vinegar, honey and thyme sprigs and bring to a simmer; let simmer 2 minutes, then transfer to a bowl. Wipe out skillet, then add olive oil and garlic. Cook garlic for 2 to 3 minutes, or until garlic is golden and caramelized. Remove garlic and finely chop. Reserve garlic oil.
- Step 4
Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Lightly flour a work surface and rolling pin. Gently roll out dough to a ¼-inch thickness, dusting with flour if dough is sticking. Transfer dough to baking sheet and return to fridge for another 20 minutes.
- Step 5
Heat oven to 425 degrees. Pat tomatoes dry with paper towels. Brush tomatoes with honey mixture (reserve the thyme sprigs). Leaving a 3-inch border, distribute cheese, garlic and half the chopped thyme leaves on center of crust. Add black pepper to taste, then layer tomatoes in an overlapping pattern, maintaining the 3-inch border. Drizzle garlic oil over tomatoes, sprinkle with remaining thyme leaves and lay the reserved whole thyme sprigs on top. Gently fold crust up around tomatoes, making a 2-inch border.
- Step 6
In a small bowl, whisk egg and 1 teaspoon water. Using a pastry brush, brush egg wash over crust and sprinkle top of crostata with flaky salt. Bake for about 35 minutes, until pastry is deeply golden brown. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Private Notes
Comments
Why not roll the dough on parchment, then use it to transfer? I do that with fruit crostatas.
We asked Melissa Clark and here is her reply: "Oh definitely, any grating cheese will work - Gruyere or an aged goat cheese or smoked mozzarella..."
I would give this ten stars if possible! I made this last night, following the recipe pretty closely. I used Gran Padano Italian cheese instead of cheddar. The dough is a little difficult to move once it is rolled out. I think I would use a touch more ice water. But, Oh My, this recipe is beyond fantastic! The crust was light and a little crunchy from the corn meal. The favors blended perfectly. I served it with a simple kale salad. This is a winner and definitely worth the effort!
Hmm. I did something wrong, besides over-baking the crust. It crumbled as I picked it up. Did I not mix the dough thoroughly enough, perhaps? Ideas? Did not add cheese to the filling to lower fat content. Will think about lowering the butter as well.
I just made this a second time and tried it with just 8 T of butter like suggested elsewhere and it was plenty. I made it in a tart tin and just did straight sides since I wanted to use a few more tomatoes. worked out fine and looked nice too. Also used convection since my tomato slice still seemed a bit wet.
Delicious just as written. Amazing crust!