Sep 20, 2018

Heirloom Tomato Galette with Caramelized Onions & Ricotta

Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes
In this tomato galette recipe summer heirloom tomatoes are paired with caramelized onions and ricotta cheese served wrapped in pastry dough for a savory pie.
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The tomato galette recipe starts with basic pie dough for the crust, which is rolled out and filled with creamy ricotta cheese, caramelized onions, sweet and juicy heirloom tomatoes and Parmesan cheese creating an appetizer that eases out of summer and into fall.

It’s the end of summer and heirloom tomatoes are on their way out. With their rainbow colors and juicy interior heirloom tomatoes are a favorite of mine. California’s heirloom season is later than much of the country’s, running until late summer.

Heirloom Tomato Galette with Caramelized Onions & Ricotta

What is a Galette?

A galette is a French term to characterize freeform tarts and pastries. A galette, also considered a tart, lacks the formality of a pie. The dough is rolled out and shaped around the filling with rustic edges. It can be quickly assembled and doesn’t require the level of skill pies do.

They’re typically made with either sweet or savory fillings encased in a crusty pastry dough. I love making galettes because they’re much more approachable than perfectly garnished pies or tarts. The pastry dough is rolled out into a rough circle (the edges don’t need to be perfect). Then the filling is added and carefully folded around the filling – no pan necessary. 

Key Ingredients in This Recipe

Caramelized Onions

While caramelizing onions takes a bit of patience, don’t try to rush the process by turning up the heat. The goal is to draw out the sugars in the onions and caramelize them – you have to go low and slow. You end up with mellow sweet onion flavor. I use a mix of yellow onion and red onion.

Ricotta 

Ricotta is a mild, soft and creamy Italian cheese that is made from the leftover whey created when making mozzarella and other similar cheeses. The texture and look is similar to cottage cheese. I always choose whole milk ricotta over part-skim because the latter can be watery.

Heirloom tomatoes

With their superior flavor, heirloom tomatoes come from seeds passed down and are typically at least 50 years old. Look for a variety of colors. If you like heirloom tomatoes check out these other recipes here. They add a wonderful flavor to this tomato galette recipe.

tomato galette recipe summer heirloom tomatoes, caramelized onions and ricotta cheese wrapped in pastry dough

How to Make Heirloom Tomato Galette

For the dough:

  1. Mix the dough. To make the dough, place the flour, sugar and salt into a food processor. Pulse for a few seconds to combine. Pour 6 tablespoons of cold water over a few ice cubes. Let sit for a few seconds to chill. Remove the ice cubes from the chilled water, and add the butter and 6 tablespoons of the water to the flour mixture.
  2. Knead then chill. Pulse until the mixture forms a rough dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead the dough. Form into a square, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 10 minutes.

For the caramelized onions:

  1. Sauté the onions. Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat, add the olive oil and heat through. Add the butter and allow to melt. Add the onions and toss quickly to remove the moisture from the onions. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and start to brown.
  2. Continue to caramelize. Sprinkle the salt and sugar over the onions (to help them caramelize) and reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are light brown and begin to caramelize, about 20 minutes.
  3. Set aside. Add the balsamic and stir to combine. Continue to cook until the onions are uniformly brown and caramelized, about an additional 10 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside.

To make the filling and assemble:

  1. Heat the oven. Heat oven to 375ºF (190ºC).
  2. Roll out the dough. Roll the dough out into an 16-inch by 12-inch rectangle. Transfer the dough to a parchment paper lined baking sheet or quarter sheet pan. Spread the ricotta over the dough leaving a 2-inch border around the edges.
  3. Assemble the tomato galette. Arrange the caramelized onions over the ricotta then layer the heirloom tomatoes over the top. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese then fold the outer edge of the dough over itself to form a crust over the tomatoes. Brush the edges with the beaten egg.
  4. Bake. Bake until the edges are golden brown, about 50 minutes. Let cool completely and sprinkle with flaky sea salt.

Other Recipes to Try

If you enjoy this heirloom tomato galette recipe, I recommend checking out some of these:

Heirloom Tomato Galette with Caramelized Onions & Ricotta

Print Pin
Prep Time 40 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Serves 9

Ingredients:

For the dough:

  • cups all-purpose flour, plus additional for rolling out the dough
  • 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
  • ½ teaspoon table salt
  • 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cut into cubes

For the caramelized onions:

  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 medium red onions, thinly sliced
  • 1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
  • 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

For the filling:

  • cups drained whole milk ricotta
  • 6 medium assorted heirloom tomatoes, sliced ¼-inch thick
  • ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • Flaky sea salt, as needed

Instructions:

For the dough:

  • To make the dough, place the flour, sugar and salt into a food processor. Pulse for a few seconds to combine. Pour 6 tablespoons of cold water over a few ice cubes. Let sit for a few seconds to chill. Remove the ice cubes from the chilled water, and add the butter and 6 tablespoons of the water to the flour mixture.
  • Pulse until the mixture forms a rough dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead the dough. Form into a square, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 10 minutes.

For the caramelized onions:

  • Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat, add the olive oil and heat through. Add the butter and allow to melt. Add the onions and toss quickly to remove the moisture from the onions. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and start to brown.
  • Sprinkle the salt and sugar over the onions (to help them caramelize) and reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are light brown and begin to caramelize, about 20 minutes.
  • Add the balsamic and stir to combine. Continue to cook until the onions are uniformly brown and caramelized, about an additional 10 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside.

For the filling:

  • Heat oven to 375ºF (190ºC).
  • Roll the dough out into an 16-inch by 12-inch rectangle. Transfer the dough to a parchment paper lined baking sheet or quarter sheet pan. Spread the ricotta over the dough leaving a 2-inch border around the edges.
  • Arrange the caramelized onions over the ricotta then layer the heirloom tomatoes over the top. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese then fold the outer edge of the dough over itself to form a crust over the tomatoes. Brush the edges with the beaten egg.
  • Bake until the edges are golden brown, about 50 minutes. Let cool completely and sprinkle with flaky sea salt.

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