Tomato, Feta and Basil Galette

This is a summer of great celebration in Seattle and all of you gardeners know why. Tomatoes have turned their right color! In July! This has never happened. At least not in my yard. Usually, come September, my tomato plants are heavy with fruit, looking as if their vines will snap at any given moment. I grow wildly excited and begin dreaming tomato recipes and having visions of what I will do with my crop. And then, probably just days before they are ready to harvest, BAM! It comes. The rain. That never-ending soggy cloud that covers the sun here in Seattle, hiding it away until July 5th of the following year, and leaving my tomato plants bulging with a green crop and a scowling gardener.

But this year! It's like Christmas came early and the tomato bounty will finally be enjoyed. I hope you find yourself in an overabundant tomato predicament so you can give this recipe a try. It's like a cross between a vegetable and dessert, if that's even possible. The flaky crust crumbles in your mouth, a perfect pair with the sweet tomatoes and pungent feta. And the fresh basil! I best not say more lest I begin sounding awkward. 

Oddly enough, this dish tonight was inspired by a cow. You see, as we speak, my in-laws are making their way to Oregon to pick up and lug home some grass-fed beef (and by some I mean an entire cow) to give us anemic folk a boost and so the theme of tonight's meal was We-Desperately-Need-Some-Space-in-the-Freezer-so-Defrost-and-Cook-Up. If you recall, I'm a crust cheater as I mentioned in this post here. Once again, I used my very favorite frozen pie crust find from Trader Joe's (I mean, I needed to clear out a spot in the freezer after all). The crust contains no shortening and therefore is trans fat free which makes it practically a health food...or something. By using the frozen crust (which I thawed on the counter for about 30 minutes before using), I whipped out the galette in no time. I served it along with some grilled peaches, zucchini and barbecued chicken. We incidentally discovered that each bite of galette married perfectly with a slice of grilled peach. This got me dreaming of future galette combinations...thinly sliced zucchini and pancetta, prosciutto, peaches and blue cheese to name a couple.
 

Tomato, Feta and Basil Galette

(adapted from Cooking Light Magazine)

 

1 recipe pie crust

1 pint cherry tomatoes or multicolored pear tomatoes, halved lengthwise

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup (2 ounces) crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup small basil leaves

Preheat oven to 425°.

Unwrap dough, and roll dough into a 13-inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Place dough on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Arrange tomatoes, cut sides up, on top of dough, leaving a 1 1/2-inch border. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and top with feta. Fold edges of dough over tomatoes to partially cover. Bake at 425° for 25 minutes or until golden brown. Sprinkle evenly with cheese. Bake an additional 5 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes, and sprinkle with basil. Cut into 6 wedges.

Serves 6