Tomato, thyme and ricotta tart – video

How to make:

• Whizz the flour with the salt, a good grinding of black pepper and the thyme in a food processor. Add the butter and pulse until the mix starts to look like breadcrumbs. Add 3-4 tbsp ice-cold water and pulse again until the mixture comes together to form a ball. (Or rub the butter into the flour with your fingertips, then add the water and mix with a wooden spoon.) Tip out onto a large sheet of cling film, wrap, then chill for 30 minutes.
• On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the pastry to a roughly 28cm circle the thickness of £1 coin. Lift up the pastry with the flour-dusted rolling pin, drape into the tart tin and gently press to line the edges. Trim any excess pastry, leaving a small overhang proud of the tin. Rest in the fridge for 15 minutes. Heat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/gas 6.
• Prick the pastry base all over with a fork, line with a piece of scrunched baking paper or foil, then fill with ceramic baking beans or uncooked rice. Bake for 20 minutes until the edges feel firm, then remove the paper/foil and beans/rice and bake for 6-8 minutes more until the pastry is golden and sandy to the touch. Set aside on a wire rack to cool fully in the tin.
• When you’re ready to serve, beat together both ricottas in a mixing bowl with 1 tsp of the olive oil, the honey, thyme, lemon zest, black pepper and 2-3 pinches of smoked sea salt. Remove the pastry case from its tin and put on a serving plate. Spoon in the ricotta mixture and level using the back of a spoon. Slice the tomatoes and arrange on top, starting with the larger ones, then layering the smaller ones on top. Drizzle with the rest of the oil, then finish with salt and pepper and the extra thyme and basil leaves.

If this isn’t quite what you were looking for, check out our oven-dried tomato and taleggio tart with pesto.