Golden tomato and basil galette recipe
You might recognise this dish: it was on the menu at Le Caprice 30-odd years ago when I was head chef there. I still make it today and it’s a great starter. I’ve used golden tomatoes here but you could use any ripe ones that you fancy. ‘’
Timings
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Serves
Four as a starter
Ingredients
For the galette
4 x 16cm circles of ready-rolled butter puff pastry
80g sun-dried tomatoes in oil (drained weight, but keep the oil)
8 large or 12 medium ripe golden tomatoes, peeled (see how-to, previous page) and sliced ?cm thick
For the dressing
60g basil, stalks and all
60-80ml extra-virgin olive oil
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 160C/140C fan/gas mark 3.
2. Place the pastry circles on a baking sheet and prick them all over with a fork. Bake for 5 minutes, flipping them over after 2. I place an upside-down wire rack on top of them when they go in the oven, to prevent them from rising and forming an uneven base.
3. Remove from the oven and turn it up to 200C/180C fan/gas mark 6.
4. Blend the drained sun-dried tomatoes in a liquidiser or food processor with a little of their oil until you have a smooth paste, adding more of the oil if necessary, then spoon it into a bowl.
5. Wash the liquidiser then blend the basil with the olive oil. Add some tomato oil if the dressing looks too thick.
To assemble, spread a thin layer of sun-dried tomato purée all over the pastry bases. Lay the sliced tomatoes
in rings on top, overlapping slightly.
6. Season and bake for 8-10 minutes. Drizzle the basil dressing generously over the tomatoes and sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt before serving.