Once upon a time when this writer was a mere youth, the very idea of buying a tart base from the supermarket was out of the question. Real cooks and superior chefs made their own tart bases. W hile this is both a good and noble opinion, it disregards the most important and expensive ingredient in the process – time. There might still be purists out there who truly believe that generating a tart base from scratch is worth the effort, but for this time-conscious cook, the store-bought product is damn-near indistinguishable from the home-made artwork.
Perhaps one day we could have a blind tart-base tasting with experts flown in from Cape Town, the city where all the best chefs in Africa have their custom-designed kitchens. But mere mortals should just take this hack’s advice and buy the tart base ready-made. Right, ideology out of the way, let’s get cracking. The tomatoes have to be Roma, because of their cylindrical shape, which means similarly sized slices. They look good and looks really matter in good food production. Slice the tomatoes thinly. Next, the mozzarella.
This outstanding soft cheese comes in fresh or smoked versions. It’s relatively easy to make in the home kitchen, something which I am contemplating for a future column. Slice or grate the mozzarella. Wash the fresh basil and tear the leaves into three or four sections. Tearing them produces a better appearance. ut the base on a baking tray. Line it with the sliced mozzarella, which you then cover with overlapping slices of Roma tomato. Scatter the basil over the tomato and then sprinkle it lightly with a little salt and some freshly ground black pepper. hen you’re constructing the tart, ensure that the depth of cheese and tomato is the same throughout it to ensure uniform baking.
To make a classic tomato tart you will need:
- 1 frozen tart base
- 250g mozzarella cheese
- Fresh basil and rocket leaves
- 8 Roma tomatoes
- Black pepper and salt Extra-virgin olive oil
Finally, carefully drizzle the extra-virgin olive oil over the surface. Stick the tart into the oven, which has been preheated to 180ºC, and bake for approximately 25 minutes. Keep an eye on it for the last 10 minutes or so to avoid over-baking. Remove when ready and dress with a couple more torn basil leaves. T here you have it – a fragrant, flavoursome, good-looking, vegetable-based addition to your next braai. Even the committed carnivores will love it. – David Basckin |fw
