Tomato Pie Recipe

To make the pie crust, in a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, and salt. Add cold, cubed butter and, using your fingers (or a potato masher), work the butter into the flour mixture. Quickly break the butter down into the flour mixture, some butter pieces will be the size of oat flakes, some will be the size of peas. Create a well in the mixture and pour in the cold buttermilk. Use a fork to bring to dough together. Try to moisten all of the flour bits. Add a bit more buttermilk if necessary, but you want to mixture to be shaggy and not outwardly wet.

On a lightly floured work surface, dump out the dough mixture. It will be moist and shaggy. That’s perfect. Gently knead into a disk. Wrap the disk in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. Allowing the dough to rest in the refrigerator will help rechill the butter and distribute the moisture.

To roll out the pie crust, on a well floured surface, roll the crust 1/8 inch thick and about 12 inches in diameter. Transfer it to a tart pan. Trim the edges to be flush with the tart pan. Cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for a minimum of 30 minutes while the oven preheats. Chilling the dough will help it not sink along the sides as it prebakes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place a rack in the upper third of the oven.

Line the tart pan with foil. Add dried beans to weigh down the pie crust (or pie weights), spreading the beans up along the sides of the foil lined tart too. Bake for 12 minutes. Remove the foil and beans and bake for 5 minutes more. Remove from the oven and allow to rest while you assemble the filling.

To make the filling, in a medium skillet over medium heat, warm the olive oil. Add the sliced onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are softened and browned, about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and add the smashed garlic and half of the fresh thyme. Cook on low heat, stirring just a few times, for 5 minutes, until the garlic is just softened. Remove from heat.

Slice half of the cherry tomatoes in half. Set aside.

In a medium bowl whisk together eggs, milk, remaining thyme, and a good pinch of sea salt and black pepper.

In a small bowl, stir together ricotta cheese, parsley, and another good pinch of salt and pepper. Now we have all of our elements!

In the pre-baked crust, layer the onions and garlic across the bottom. Add tomatoes, sliced and whole to the tart dish. Load em up! Nestle ricotta in four or five dollops across the tart. Place the tart pan on a rimmed baking sheet. I do this next part next to the oven. Carefully pour the egg mixture atop the tomatoes and ricotta and place in the oven.