As recipes go, I almost feel like this is a bit of a cop out because there’s absolutely zero skill involved but the result is absolutely scrumptious so I’m sharing it with you anyway. Puff pastry tarts make such a great midweek meal as you can buy the ready-rolled sheet, plonk a few things on top, whack it in the oven and you’re done. It’s a great one for busy families or for lazy cooks. It also feels a bit like a pizza which is never a bad thing.
I often pile all sorts of veg on top of a puff pastry tart, thinly sliced courgettes and aubergines being my favourites. However, I deliberately kept it really simple this time opting for tomatoes and peppers. Making sure you use a good spread for the base is essential to keep this from being too dry and bland, you could use tomato purée or ketchup, but I love the boost of flavour you get from pesto, and you really don’t need a lot of it. I like to mix it in with something else to smooth out the flavours a little, I often use tomato purée but in this instance I had a tub of fantastic chilli sauce a friend of mine makes in his restaurant left in the fridge and it did the job brilliantly.
One sheet of ready rolled puff pastry will feed 4-6 of you depending on how hungry you are and what you’re having on the side. It’s best served with a simple leafy salad, sometimes I’ll do some couscous or potato salad on the side if I’m feeling a bit hungrier. Plus, I always save a slice for my lunchbox the following day.
Ingredients
(serves 4-6)
1 sheet ready rolled puff pastry
2 tbsp pesto
1 tbsp chunky chilli sauce or salsa (optional)
3-4 tomatoes, cut into 1/4 inch slices
2 roasted red peppers, thinly sliced
10g feta cheese, crumbled
Salt and pepper
Method
- Preheat oven to 180°C.
- Unroll pastry sheet and layout on a large oven sheet on top of the greaseproof paper it came with.
- Score a line around 2cm from the edge all the way around to form your crust.
- Spread the pesto evenly across the rectangle in the middle and dot the chilli sauce/salsa evenly amongst it if using.
- Lay out the tomato slices on top of the pesto, around 12 should cover the tart, depending on the size of your tomatoes.
- Evenly spread over the pepper slices. Season with salt and pepper.
- Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until the pastry is puffed up and golden.
- Remove from the oven and lay out on a large wooden board. Crumble the feta over the top.
- Cut into squares to serve.
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