italian essentials: awesome pizza tart
The three important components of a good pizza are the cheeses, filling, and the crust. This recipe uses standard components for the first two and switches out the crust for something buttery and flakey… a tart crust. It looks great and tastes awesome. I served it with chicken wings and cold beers. So, you ready… Let’s get into the kitchen. Note: As of late I have become a bit slapdash with my photos; however, I think there are enough to take you through the process.
prep time
20 Min
cook time
45 Min
method
Bake
yield
Several
Ingredients
- PLAN/PURCHASE
- 1 buttery tart crust, more on this later
- 8 ounces italian sausage, mild or hot, your choice
- 1 - 2 large garden-fresh tomatoes
- 6 - 8 ounces pizza sauce, or your favorite tomato-based sauce, more on this later
- 4 slices provolone cheese, 2 ounces
- 4 ounces mozzarella, freshly grated
- salt, kosher variety, for the tomatoes
- OPTIONAL SPICES
- dried basil
- dried oregano
- dried rosemary
- dried fennel seed (i love fennel)
How To Make italian essentials: awesome pizza tart
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Step 1PREP/PREPARE
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Step 2Although not a necessity, if you have a tart pan, it makes for a brilliant presentation.
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Step 3Savory Tart Crust If you want to save time, you can find decent tart crusts at the local grocer. Just make sure it is a savory, not sweet crust. If you are looking for an awesome, flaky tart crust, look no further: https://www.justapinch.com/recipes/dessert/pie/autumn-essentials-super-flaky-pie-tart-crust.html?r=10 Pizza Sauce Use your favorite tomato-based sauce; however, if you feel like making your own, here is brilliant one. If I do say so myself: https://www.justapinch.com/recipes/sauce-spread/other-sauce-spread/italian-essentials-awesome-pizza-sauce.html?r=1
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Step 4Gather your ingredients.
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Step 5Prebake your tart shell, according to recipe directions, and reserve.
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Step 6Some “store-bought” tart shells come prebaked… If that is the case, you have my permission to skip this step.
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Step 7Slice the tomatoes into 1/4-inch (.6cm) slices. You want 4 slices.
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Step 8Lay them on paper towels, and sprinkle with salt. Allow them to sit for a about 30 minutes, then blot the tops with another paper towel, and reserve.
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Step 9Thirty minutes is just the minimum amount of time; you could go up to an hour without a problem. What we are doing is removing as much of the water from the tomatoes as possible. That will prevent the pizza tart from becoming soggy, and we hate it when that happens.
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Step 10While you're waiting for the tomatoes to release their moisture, cook the sausage in a sauté pan over medium heat until no pink remains. Then drain on paper towels and reserve.
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Step 11While cooking, use a wooden spoon to break the sausage into small bits.
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Step 12Place a rack in the middle position and preheat the oven to 350f (175c).
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Step 13Place the sliced provolone on the bottom of the prebaked tart crust. Add the sauce. Add the sausage. Add the tomatoes.
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Step 14With the four slices of provolone, you should have enough to cover the bottom of the tart and come up about an inch (2.5cm) on the sides.
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Step 15The provolone I used for this recipe was cut into 1/8-inch (0.4cm) thick, by 4-inch (10cm) diameter slices.
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Step 16Top with the grated mozzarella.
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Step 17Place the pie in the preheated oven and bake until the cheese is bubbly and beginning to brown, about 40 to 45 minutes.
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Step 18PLATE/PRESENT
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Step 19Let the tart cool about 10 – 15 minutes before serving.
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Step 20Keep the faith and keep cooking.
- Last Step: Don't forget to share! Post a picture of your finished recipe here and on your favorite social network. Don't forget to tag Just A Pinch and include #justapinchrecipes!
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