I can’t resist posting this! I made this cherry tomato and basil tart last night as a side for a dinner with friends. Being unsure how it would turn out I didn’t bother setting myself up for a good photo. But I snapped this in the car while driving there and after tasting it I had to share it. Everything was from either the fridge, the freezer or the garden – that’s what I call efficiency!

I had a basic recipe I was following (Donna Hay’s cherry tomato tart) which calls for goat’s cheese. I don’t know about you, but I don’t tend to buy goats cheese on a whim. So I improvised. Apparently if you drain your homemade yoghurt (or any yoghurt) in muslin cloth overnight you get cheese. A ball of beautiful soft creamy cheese. And it makes for a wonderful base for this cherry tomato tart. Warning, this requires forethought as the yoghurt process takes up at least 24 hours.. Except I only gave it about 15 hours and it worked fine.

Cherry Tomato & Basil Tart
Serves 6 as an entree or side.

1 sheet puff pastry, thawed
3 Tbsp yoghurt cheese (as below)
A handful or 2 of freshly picked tomatoes (a mix of cherry and regular), halved or sliced
1 zucchini, sliced
Basil
Olive oil
Salt & pepper
Parmesan

DO AHEAD: To make the cheese, mix a few tablespoons of yoghurt with a pinch of salt and place on a square of muslin. Gather the corners up, tie over a wooden spoon and hang over a bowl to drain. Place in the fridge for 24 – 36 hours. Once cheese is ready, turn into a bowl and mix through basil, garlic and pepper.

Preheat oven to 200˚C. Roll out the pastry into a long rectangle. Score a border around edge (not too deep like I did!) and prick all over inside the border with a fork. This will allow the edges to rise without the middle puffing up and throwing off the toppings. Spread inside the border with the yoghurt cheese. Top with halved tomatoes and sliced zucchini. Drizzle with olive oil and season well. Bake for 20 minutes. Top with freshly picked basil and Parmesan shavings.