Wright Side of Life: Tarting up tomatoes in a savoury tatin

I spent most of the day with my Mmm as she is in our bubble. I did a bit of lunch which of course included scones, which I featured in my column last week.

I had some fantastic interaction with readers after writing about scones, and quite a few sent photos of their bakes including Julie Wharton. Julie said she likes to read my column each week to get some inspiration, so here is hoping she is partial to a tomato!

I was keen to practice my flaky pastry from scratch ahead of a Bake With a Legend class next week. I wanted to make something savoury to have for lunch on Mother’s Day.

I decided on a tomato tart but an upside down one! At this time of year tomatoes can be a bit bland so I find cooking them can make them sweeter.

This recipe is called a Tomato Tatin. Traditionally a tatin is a sweet apple tart which originated in a small town in central France. What is different about a tatin is that the pastry is baked on top of the filling and flipped over after it is baked.

I made my own puff pastry, but a roll of shop-bought pastry works very well.

To start, set the oven to 210c.. Grease a 20cm round cake tin with a solid base.

Slice six large tomatoes in half horizontally, and sprinkle with salt.

Cut a large red onion into thin rings. Peel and smash a few garlic cloves.

Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan and gently cook the onion for a few minutes until it is soft and glossy, then add a teaspoon of sugar and a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar.

Scatter in some thyme, the garlic and some salt and pepper. We are caramelising the onions.

Lay the tomatoes, cut side down, into the tin, and cover with the onion mixture.

Cut a circle of pastry a little larger than the tin to allow for shrinkage. Lay the pastry on top tucking the excess down around the sides.

Bake for about half an hour until the pastry is risen and golden. Remove from the oven and cool in the tin for a few minutes, then place a plate on top and carefully flip to release the tart on to the plate.

Serve with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar scattered over the tart. Bon Appetit!