Tomato & tapenade tart

This tart is extremely simple. Given the right tomatoes, it’s a highlight of the summer table. A sprinkling of fragrant basil at the end is essential.

MAKES 1 large tart (enough for 4 people for lunch) PREP 35 mins COOK 30 mins EASY

For the tart

4 bull’s heart or large vine tomatoes (400g)

500g block puff pastry plain flour, to dust small handful Italian plum tomatoes (around 80g), red and yellow if possible good-quality olive oil, for drizzling small bunch basil, leaves torn For the tapenade

100g black olives, drained and pitted

½ small garlic clove, crushed

½ tsp fresh thyme leaves

1 salted anchovy fillet, washed and patted dry 1 tsp salted capers, washed and drained

1 tsp brandy

4 tsp olive oil

1 tsp red wine vinegar

1 Slice the large tomatoes into thick 1cm rounds. Transfer to a sieve suspended over a bowl and season well with salt. Leave the tomatoes for at least 30 mins to allow the juices to drip into the bowl. This will stop your pastry going soggy.

2 To make the tapenade, put the olives, garlic, thyme, anchovy and capers in a blender. Blitz well. Add the brandy, oil and vinegar, and blitz further until everything is fully incorporated and very smooth. Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.

3 Next, roll out the pastry on a floured work surface to a rectangle to fit your largest baking tray (around 35 x 25cm). Cut a rectangle of baking parchment to the same size, then place the pastry on top. Score a 2cm border all around the edges of the pastry. 4 Put the baking tray in the oven to heat for 10 mins. To assemble the tart, top the pastry with a generous layer of tapenade inside the scored border, then arrange the sliced tomatoes in a single layer on top. Halve the small tomatoes, season with salt, and use them to fill any gaps. Drizzle the tart filling with olive oil and grind over some black pepper. Remove the hot tray from the oven, slide in the tart on the baking parchment and return to the oven. Bake for 30 mins, or until the pastry borders are puffed and crisp, the base is a light golden brown (lift the tart very carefully with a spatula to check) and the tomatoes are soft, and have just started to take on a little colour.

5 Remove the tart from the oven, season and scatter over the basil. Leave the tart to cool on the tray, then slice while it’s still warm. Drizzle with olive oil before serving.

GOOD TO KNOW fibre • 1 of 5-a-day

PER SERVING 647 kcals • fat 46g • saturates 17g • carbs 46g • sugars 5g • fibre 7g • protein 9g • salt 1.6g