Roasted Okra and Heirloom Tomato Tart with Whipped Goat Cheese Cream

Georgia Grown

The colorful summer bounty of metro Atlanta’s many community farmers markets inspired this recipe, and celebrates the joy of an after-market lunch with the freshest local produce. Metro Atlanta’s appetite for artisanal products has continued to expand, inspiring passion for the homegrown olive oil direct from olive orchards in south and middle Georgia and goat cheese made from the fresh milk of small grazing herds around the state, highlighting the modern diversity of Georgia’s agricultural industry.  

Serves 3-4 as a light meal, or 6-8 as an appetizer

 Ingredients

  • 1 sheet puff pastry, thawed
  • 2-4 medium or small heirloom tomatoes, different colors, sliced ¼ inch thick
  • 8-12 okra, thinly sliced on a mandoline or with a very sharp knife
  • 2 teaspoons Georgia olive oil, plus more for drizzling 
  • ¼ cup heavy cream
  • 4 ounces goat cheese, fully softened
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped chives
  • Basil leaves, for serving

 

Directions 

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with one layer of paper towels. Season tomato slices with a sprinkle of salt on both sides as you lay them on the baking sheet. Cover with another layer of paper towels. Set aside for 15-20 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, prepare the okra. Line another large rimmed baking sheet with parchment. Toss sliced okra in a large bowl with the olive oil, salt, and a grind of fresh black pepper. Arrange evenly spaced on baking sheet. Roast okra for 15-17 minutes, depending on thickness, until brown in a few spots and slightly crisp. Remove from oven and set aside. Raise oven temperature to 425 degrees F.
  3.  Line a baking sheet with parchment. Dust work surface lightly with flour, and roll puff pastry into a 10×12 inch rectangle. Dock with a fork, leaving a ½ inch border. Roll and then unroll gently around the rolling pin to transfer to baking sheet.
  4. In a bowl, whip softened goat cheese and heavy cream together with a hand mixer or stand mixer until the consistency of whipped cream. Add chives and whip again for a few seconds to combine. Use an offset spatula to spread half of the whipped goat cheese cream evenly on the pastry, staying within the ½ inch border. Cover the rest of the cream with plastic wrap and place in the fridge to chill.
  5. Shingle salted tomato slices over the cream (they should be only slightly overlapping, in 3 rows of 4, or 4 rows of 5), grind a few turns of black pepper over, then place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes, rotating halfway through. Pastry should be deeply brown and crisp all the way through.
  6. Sprinkle roasted okra over the tart, then dollop goat cheese using two spoons, spreading the cream out with the spoons’ front tips. Drizzle with more olive oil, and garnish with basil leaves. Serve.