Ann Marotto’s Fresh Tomato Pie

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  • FOR THE PASTRY
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese
  • 8 tablespoons (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • FOR THE FILLING
  • About 2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
  • 2 to 3 large beefsteak tomatoes, sliced thick and evenly
  • 1 cup grated low-fat Swiss cheese
  • About 8 basil leaves, stacked, rolled and cut crosswise into very thin slices (julienne; about 2 tablespoons)
  • 2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
  • Kosher or coarse sea salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 cup shredded low-fat mozzarella cheese
  • 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Have ready an ungreased 9-inch pie plate or fluted quiche

For the pastry: Combine the ingredients in a large bowl and, using your fingers or a pastry blender, cut the mixture until it comes together as a smooth dough, with the butter well incorporated. Form the dough into a ball, flatten it slightly, wrap in wax paper or plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes or up to 24 hours. note: play around with this maybe use food processor for butter and flour and then add cottage cheese and pulse, don’t think mine dough was incorporated enough.

On a lightly floured surface or between two pieces of wax paper, roll out the dough slightly larger than the pie plate or quiche pan and press the dough into the plate or pan. Prick the bottom with the tines of a fork, cover loosely and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Line the pie shell with aluminum foil and pour ceramic pie weights or dried beans evenly on the foil. Bake for 8 minutes, then carefully remove the weights or beans and the foil, and bake for 2 minutes. (At this point, the crust will not be fully baked.) Cool.

For the filling: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Brush the bottom of the cooled pie shell with a thin, see-through coating of the mustard. Layer the tomato slices, Swiss cheese, basil and parsley, seasoning each layer lightly with salt and pepper to taste. Scatter the mozzarella and Parmesan evenly over the top; bake for 30 to 40 minutes.

Serve warm.

 

Easy And Elegant Asparagus Tart from 12tomatoes.com

  • 1 (17.3 Asparagus-Swiss-Tart-Resizedoz) package frozen puff pastry, thawed
  • 1 1/2 pounds asparagus
  • 3 cups assorted cheese, grated (2 1/2 cups swiss, 1/2 cup parmesan)
  • 2 tablespoons honey dijon mustard
  • 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1-2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar, optional
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
  • Hollandaise sauce, garnish
    1. Preheat oven to 400º F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
    2. Take both sheets of thawed puff pastry and place them on lined baking sheet, overlapping them by 1 inch and pressing the seam gently to seal.
    3. Use a paring knife to score a rectangle border 1 inch from the edge of pastry, then take a fork and pierce the dough all around the inside of the rectangle. (This allows steam to be released so the center of your tart doesn’t puff up, while the outside edges do.)
    4. Place baking sheet in oven and bake for 12-15 minutes, or until golden brown and lightly puffed up.
    5. Remove from oven and let cool 2-3 minutes, then brush honey dijon mustard and balsamic vinegar onto the center of puff pastry. Evenly sprinkle assorted cheeses over the center of tart.
    6. Take your asparagus and trim the ends so they fit into the center rectangle of tart. Lay asparagus out in a single layer, alternating the direction ot the tips with each row, then brush with olive oil and season generously with salt and pepper.
    7. Return baking sheet to oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown and edges are puffed up, and asparagus is tender.
    8. Remove from oven and let cool 5 minutes, then drizzle with hollandaise sauce, slice, serve and enjoy!