When we were in LA over the weekend to celebrate our anniversary, we went to the Santa Monica Farmers’ Market on Saturday morning. While the Ferry Plaza Farmers’ Market in San Francisco is still my favourite market, the Santa Monica Farmers’ Market had some incredible looking produce, and a huge variety as well.

Considering it is August, tomatoes reigned supreme at all the stands and there were so many different kinds, including tons of gorgeous heirloom tomatoes. We brought a bunch back to Vegas to cook with this week, but they would be perfect for this Heirloom Tomato and Pesto Tart with Parmesan Crust that I made with tomatoes from the Vegas farmers’ market. This tomato tart feeds 8 people at $1.31 per serving.

Heirloom Tomato and Pesto Tart with Parmesan Crust
6 colorful, medium-sized heirloom tomatoes, sliced 1/6-inch thick
1 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup unsalted organic butter, well chilled and cut into 1/4-inch cubes
4-ounce chunk, or around 2 cups, good fresh Parmesan, grated with a microplane grater
fresh pesto
2 tablespoons ice cold water
2 tablespoons good extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup slivered basil

The key to a successful tart is great looking heirloom tomatoes. I’d be lying if I could identify each type of heirloom tomato that I bought at the farmers’ market. I based my choices on which tomatoes looked pretty and made sure I had a variety of different kinds to provide a nice range in flavours.

To prevent a soggy tart crust, you need to get the tomato slices as dry as possible. The best way to do this is to lay a double layer of kitchen towels on your counter and place the tomato slices on top. Sprinkle them with a bit of salt and then top the tomatoes with another double layer of kitchen roll.

Gently press on the tomatoes to relieve them of extra liquid. The longer you can let the tomatoes sit, the less chance they will make your crust all gross and soggy.

Preheat the oven to 350ÀöF.

Place both flours, butter, and Parmesan in a food processor, and pulse quickly, about 25 times. The goal is a sandy-looking blend that has some pea-sized pieces of butter in it. Add the 2 tablespoons of ice water, and pulse a few more times. The end result should stick together when you pinch it between your fingers.

Place the dough into a 9- or 10-inch tart pan, and quickly press the dough into the pan by uniformly pressing the dough across the bottom. Work the dough out towards the sides and up to the edge to form a rim. Place the crust in the fridge and chill it for 15 minutes. Once the tart crust is chilled, take it out of the fridge and poke the bottom of the crust a few times with a fork.

Cover the tart with tinfoil and fill the bottom of the crust with pie weights. Place the pan on a baking sheet and cook it on the middle rack of the oven. After 15 minutes, take out the tart crust and gently remove the tinfoil and pie weights.

Place the uncovered tart back in the oven, and cook for another 10 minutes, or until it is a deep golden brown in color. Let the crust cool to room temperature before filling.

Just before serving, spread some fresh pesto on the bottom of the cooled tart crust, and then arrange the tomato slices in a concentric pattern inside the crust. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle with some chopped basil. Season with salt and pepper because tomatoes taste excellent with lots of salt.

The tart is served at room temperature and is almost like a tomato salad inside a crust since the tomatoes are left raw with just a simple dressing of olive oil and chopped basil.