Late-summer Bounty: Tomato, Prosciutto, and Ricotta Tart

Screw Christmas - right now is the most wonderful time of the year! Okay, that was a bit harsh, but I don't see how Christmas can even compete with the glory that is tomato season. Right now, just when you feel like the days should be cooling down but they're readily throwing their 90F temperatures in your face; when all you want to do is start wearing sweaters and roast things, but you can barely stand to cook it's so hot in your house? This is the best part of summer for me. Granted, summer is probably my least favorite season, even though many of my favorite vegetables and fruits are in season, and especially THIS part of summer, garden- and market-fresh tomatoes make it all worthwhile. I can stand the hotter-than-hot afternoons and evenings knowing that a wonderful meal is only a few juicy slices away. This is the time of year I yearn for my own vegetable garden so I could brave the heat only to come back to the kitchen with a basket full of goodies to whip up into a meal like this: Tomato, Prosciutto, and Ricotta Tart.

I'll readily admit that ricotta is my least favorite of all the cheeses. There's just something about the texture and flavor that I never really got on board with. Now, I have made my own ricotta (I did so a couple of years ago for my Ina Garten-themed birthday party, where all the food I made was from The Barefoot Contessa and I even dressed up as her, and one of the dips was a homemade herbed ricotta cheese - it's super easy to make) and it was slightly better; at least it was more milky/creamy than whatever store-bought ricotta tastes like. I figure with this dish I could easily overlook the ricotta for the almost 2 pounds of tomatoes, fresh herbs, prosciutto, and puff pastry. I've always been delighted with the recipes from Sunset magazine and this one is no different. The flavors came together to create this light, and deceptively filling, tart. The fresh juicy tomatoes, the lemony ricotta cheese, the splash of fresh herbs (I went ahead and used BOTH basil and mint for one of the most excellent flavor combinations I've recently encountered), the salty tang of prosciutto, all supported by the buttery crispy puff pastry made for a wonderful summer Sunday meal. While I did groan a bit at having to turn on my oven for this, I soon forgot the heat after I bit into this tart. This is the perfect meal to have for kicking back in your garden with a glass of wine. This is also a perfect appetizer or first-course for a garden dinner party, too! A great thing about this dish is that it's easily vegetarian-friendly. Simply eliminate the prosciutto and you've got a great appetizer (or meal) that'll please just about everyone.

Oh yeah and it made for the perfect individually packaged lunches!

A few things of note:

• Don't even try to adhere to the tart measurements in the recipe. The puff pastry I bought for this (Pepperidge Farms) is two square sheets. Honestly, once thawed and rolled out a bit, it's the perfect size for a party of 4 as meal (or 2 meals for 2 people). I tried piecing together trimmed bits and I was left with the trimmed bits coming apart in the baking process. So not worth the hassle!
• I used a full pound of ricotta cheese and I think it was a bit too much, but measuring out the 1-1/3C would've left me with too little cheese in the package to save. I think I'd go just with the half-pound next time. However, if you like ricotta use as much as you like!
• As I said above, I used both basil and mint, when the recipe called for either/or. I also didn't deal with trimming the "tiny" whole leaves and just chiffonaded both the basil and mint leaves. Believe me, having both makes for a much more complex and refreshing flavor! I also cut too much herbs, so I threw them in with the simple salad I served alongside the tart (mixed greens + arugula, tossed with olive oil and lemon juice).
• I also used a mix of large heirloom tomatoes and cherry tomatoes (the cherry tomatoes were from my coworker's garden - they were delicious!). I thinly sliced the big tomatoes and halved the cherry tomatoes, per the recipe, and it worked out wonderfully. The more colorful the better, really!

Bon appetit!

Cooking for a Cause: Appetizers for Japan Earthquake Relief

This past weekend (hey look - it's a blog that's ON-TIME!), my bestest high school friend, Nicole, hosted a fundraiser for Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief.  Originally, it was going to be a birthday party and Humane Society fundraiser to celebrate the 1 year anniversary of adopting their adorable pup, Barney.  With the recent devastation in Japan, she changed gears and made it a full-on fundraiser for Japan.  She emailed me asking if I was interested in donating my cooking and make some light appetizers for the event.  I was only too happy to donate my time and cook for this great cause.  As soon as last Monday rolled around, I turned into total caterer-mode.  A few years ago, my mom was seriously considering starting her own catering company.  Unfortunately things fell through, but I learned quite a bit watching her cater birthday parties, Easter and Christmas feasts, and so many other events we had at our house.  So, I essentially turned into her:  I grabbed my pen and notepad and wrote down what I was going to make:

• Caprese Salad Bites
• Pizza Canapés
• Torta
• Artichoke and Feta Wontons
• Beef and Green Onion Skewers
• Grilled Caesar Salad

The only thing new on this menu was the Caprese Salad Bites, but I had watched my mom make them and, really, how hard is it to make an appetizer bite with tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil?  The rest on the list I had made over and over for past parties or at least one other time (in the case of the Beef and Green Onion Skewers), so I was comfortable with making those and I knew how much time I needed and how many I needed to make.  Nicole gave me an estimate of 30 people.  I made sure that I either made double-batches or scaled down the original recipe to make it stretch.  I was also worried about covering my vegetarian bases, but turns out that most vegetarians could eat the majority of what I was making (I sometimes confused vegan with vegetarian).  Anyway, after making the menu, I made the schedule.  I plotted out the rest of the week:  when I needed to go shopping, when I could premake certain items, etc.  I scheduled everything to the point of cooking Sunday afternoon.  Everything was planned just so (well, that is until I realized I didn't schedule time to shower on Sunday - oops!  Don't worry, I showered.).  Next was the master grocery list.  I jotted down exactly what I needed and how much I needed.  I informed Marshall of the schedule, since he is the master of the Artichoke and Feta Wontons, and he was aware of when he was needed.

During all of this planning and plotting, I had two papers to write for school.  Those, of course, take precedence so I made sure to keep an eye on both time I needed for food and time I needed to write my papers.  I finished my first paper Wednesday night and my second paper Saturday evening.  I was non-stop this past week and it's what I absolutely love.

Sunday couldn't have gone any better.  Marshall and I arrived in a flurry of Whole Foods bags, platters, bowls, and prepped dishes.  With my schedule burned into my brain, I had Nicole's husband fire up the grill and I put Marshall to work frying up the wontons.  The first appetizers out where the Caprese Salad Bites.  These are also the only appetizers that day which actually got its picture taken.  I just completely forgot to snap pictures of the final product.  I threw the Beef and Onion Skewers on the grill and they were hot and ready for people to eat.  The Torta followed and were towered just so on their deep blue platter.  Next up were Marshall's wontons and those were the fastest to fly off the plate.  I got to play waitress and walked around with the wontons, so people hanging out outside got to have a taste.  By the time I made the rounds, the platter was empty.  Marshall filled up the last platter and those just went as fast as the first (it's probably because this batch had bacon!).  Last up were the melty and cheesy Pizza Canapés.

So, because I failed to provide pictures (I have prep pictures, which will be after the cut with the recipe), I asked Nicole to send out a request for testimonials.  Here is what some people said about the appetizers:

Chandani, of the Caprese Salad Bites, wrote:
This dainty, yet fresh and rich appetizer will definitely have guests coming back for more!  I couldn't resist going back for seconds, thirds, fourths, and maybe more...oops!  These salad bites have so many distinct flavors that you can taste each specific ingredient (basil, mozerella, tomato and balsamic vinegar with garlic, I believe) and will not walk away without a moan or two of "YUM".

Charly, Nicole's sister, loved the Caprese Salad Bites, too:
...these little bites were as appetizing to the eyes as they were to the palate. Neatly skewered on toothpicks, it resembled in appearance a healthy hamburger of sorts; everything was fresh and bright. Basil and fresh mozzarella are always delicious, but what really blew me away were the tomatoes used: Sweet Treats, a little fruit that packs the flavor of its larger heirloom cousin, the beefsteak. Hell yeah. Pretty sure I could have eaten it all if I allowed myself to do it.

Nicole, of the Beef and Green Onion Skewers, said:
The beef was cooked juuuuusstt right. So tender and moist, and was uber delicious paired with the onion. A great bbq treat :)


For the Pizza Canapés, Chandani thought:
These little pizzas are a perfect bite-size snack.  They are not only delicious and vegetarian, but leave you feeling like you are eating something good and healthy, most probably because the crust is made up of toasted rye-bread.

Everytime we've made the Artichoke and Feta Wontons, they go fast.  As Jesse (Nicole's husband) said:
The wontons were awesome, especially the ones with bacon!  I'm glad I got to grab those in the first wave because they did not last long.  Crispy goodness.

Even the vegetarians liked the wontons (the batch without bacon, of course!).  Chandani said:
A true vegetarian appetizer option, these were a delight to have seeing that vegetarians like myself rarely have an opportunity to enjoy a meat-free wonton!  It was a wonderful treat and I definitely would have had more than one if I had found some!  They must have gone quickly!

I'm telling you - these wontons are a hit!  Charly said:
...despite the fact that they had just come off the stove, I bit into it eagerly. Mmm. The wrapper had the perfect amount of chew to it, and the filling was savory without being too salty (a problem I usually have with pickled artichokes). There was also a batch with bacon (how can you go wrong?). I really didn't care if I burned the corners of my mouth a tiny bit; totally worth it.

Nicole said, of the Grilled Caesar Salad:
Definitely the hit of the party, mostly because it was the most interesting on top of the fact that it was delicious. The grilled lettuce just tasted like summer. Enough said :)

There's nothing better than hearing the nice things people have said about the food I made.  My only goal for cooking is to make other people happy.  This is why I do it and why I keep doing it.  Cooking for the people I love is just so rewarding.  Now, cooking for the people I love and for a cause that I love, too?  I'm happy to announce that Nicole was able to raise over $600 at the party and through Adobe, who matched our donation, we were able to donate $1200 to the Red Cross in Japan.  Yatta!