Roasted tomato and chèvre tartlets

A delicious appetizer or brunch item!

I love that chèvre (cheese made from goat’s milk) has become so popular and easy to find in grocery stores. Its delicious flavour and texture make it very versatile and I love how it pairs well with so many fruits and vegetables. I use purchased frozen puff pastry for this recipe because it’s so easy, but you could also use homemade pastry if you prefer. If you’re looking for more ways to enjoy chèvre, check out this yummy flatbread recipe and this fabulous marinated cheese recipe.  

Ingredients

• 4 oz (113 g) chèvre, at room temperature
• 2 tablespoons (30 mL) sour cream or Greek yogurt
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh basil or thyme leaves (or a combination)
• Few grinds each salt and pepper
• 1 egg at room temperature, beaten
• 10 large cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 sheet puff pastry, thawed but still cold
• Finishing salt, optional (I use truffle salt)

Method

• Preheat oven to 400F.
• In a medium bowl, beat together the chèvre, sour cream, seasoning and beaten egg until mixture is smooth. Set aside.
• Lightly flour both sides of the puff pastry then roll it out (I like to do this between two sheets of parchment paper) until it measures 12 x 15 inches (30 x 37.5 cm).
• Cut the puff pastry into 20 evenly-sized squares (3 x 3 inches / 7.5 x 7.5 cm each) using a large, sharp knife, taking care not to cut through the parchment paper if possible. If you do cut it, transfer the squares to the top sheet of parchment after cutting.
• Leaving the rolled pastry on the intact sheet of parchment, roll the edges of each square slightly (no more than 1/4 inch / .6 cm) to form a raised border on all sides.
• Lift up the sheet of parchment and place it on a large baking tray.
• Spoon about 2 teaspoons of the chevre mixture into the centre of each puff pastry square. Press one half of a large cherry or grape tomato into the chevre, cut side up. At this point, the tray of tartlets can be refrigerated for up to 4 hours before baking.

• Bake the tartlets in the preheated oven for 14-17 minutes, until the pastry is puffed and has turned golden brown.
• Remove from heat; sprinkle lightly with finishing salt if desired. Transfer to a serving plate and serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 20 small tartlets.