Tomato and Goat Cheese Tartlets

A couple weekends ago we jet-setted to Amherst, MA for July 4th Part Deux with Don's family, since Part Un was with my fam in the Catskills. We spent all day Saturday on a big river water-skiing, jet-skiing, party barging, and basking in the gorgeous weather. To replenish ourselves from all the playtime, we had plenty of great food cooked by different family members. I love potlucks! I wanted to make something relatively easy that wouldn't steal me away from the merriment for very long, so decided to try out a tart recipe from Ina Garten I bookmarked a while ago that uses the ever-simple frozen puff pastry. Her recipe makes 4 main-course tarts but I thought it would work just as well to cut into appetizer-sized tartlets. To make things easier, I cooked the onions in the morning then assembled everything right when ready to throw in the oven.

Tomato and Goat Cheese Tartlets

adapted from Barefoot Contessa

1 package (2 sheets) frozen puff pastry, thawed

olive oil

4 cups chopped onions

3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

salt and freshly ground pepper

3 tbsp dry white wine

2 tbp fresh thyme, minced

4 tbsp + 2 oz. freshly grated Parmesan

4 oz crumbled goat cheese (non-crumbled would work too)

4-5 cherry or other small tomatoes, cut into 1/4" thick slices

3 tbsp julienned basil leaves

Preheat oven to 425°.

Heat 3 tbsp olive oil in a skillet over medium heat; add the onions and garlic and sauté for 15-20 minutes until onions are limp and there is almost no moisture left. Add 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper (or to taste), the wine, and the thyme and reduce for another 10 minutes, until onions are slightly browned. Remove from the heat.

Cut the pastry into 18 squares (9 per sheet). Using a paring knife, score a 1/4" wide border within each pastry square. Sprinkle a tbsp of Parmesan over the squares, staying within the border. Divide the onion mixture across the squares, then crumble the goat cheese on top. Place a slice or three of tomatoes on each square, depending on size. Drizzle olive oil over the tomatoes, then top with the basil and the rest of the Parmesan.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through cooking, until pastries have puffed up and are nice and golden.