French Tomato Tart with Mustard - An Easy Summer Lunch from Provence

Simple, elegant and timeless, the French tomato tart is a summer classic for a reason. This typical Provençal dish requires no eggs or cream, making it a light and refreshing lunch or appetizer. Its sheer simplicity brings out the flavour of the fresh tomatoes.

When it's an extra hot summer, a quick and easy recipe is always welcome. This French tomato tart not only tastes good but it's a light and refreshing lunch when paired with a side salad. I make this frequently, especially when staying with the family in Provence, as it demands minimum effort - with more time left for la sieste or nap under an olive tree!

Easiest Tomato Tart with Puff Pastry

As the saying goes, "simplicity is the ultimate sophistication." And when it comes to French cuisine, this couldn't be more true. Made with ready made puff pastry, like this asparagus puff pastry tart, this is even easier to prepare.

If you can't find puff pastry, it's just as good made with ready-made pâte brisée or shortcrust pastry.

Best with Fresh Tomatoes

For tomato tart recipes, I found my favourite one in Andrée Maureau's book, 'Recettes en Provence'. It was lovely to meet her at the Potager du roi in Versailles many years ago so she could sign my copy, given as a post-wedding present from my parents' local bookshop in Apt when the book was published in 1998.
This was the first recipe I made from it, since it was the simplest while finding my new French 'kitchen feet'!

What we love about this recipe is that there are no eggs or cream. This intensifies the flavour of the tomatoes, roasted on top of the tart. Choose the biggest, freshest tomatoes you can find in season, with tons of flavour.
Maureau doesn't even ask for any extra preparation steps - and yet it works!

Toujours réussie et toujours très bonne - always a success and always very good.

Andrée Maureau, 'Recettes en Provence'

Tomato Tart - How Much Mustard to Use?

Although Maureau doesn't include any images or diagrams in her cookbook, everything is so beautifully handwritten. Each recipe looks like we're peaking into her own private kitchen notebook.

The one thing that surprised me, however, was her loose instructions for a whole "pot of mustard". Frankly, it blew our noses out of joint since, even after it was cooked and less piquant, it still packed its punch! So I've cut back a bit on the Dijon - unless you like it extra powerful. Just add to your taste.

How to Make the Easiest French Tomato Tart

The most important element in this tart is the quality of your tomatoes. The best are when they're in season, bursting with flavour, like vine tomatoes. Best of all, is the Coeur de Boeuf, as they have the least amount of seeds.
Frankly, they're so large that you can make this tart with just one - like in my photos! Feeling arty? Mix up the colours with green (noir de crimée) and yellow ''pineapple' tomatoes.

As fresh tomatoes give out so much juice, discard the seeds so that there is no extra liquid that leaks into the pastry. They're sliced quite thinly, placed on top of the layers of mustard and grated cheese.
As long as the seeds are discarded, there shouldn't be any problem of them being too watery for this tart.

It couldn't be easier: press the pastry into a tart pan, prick with a fork, evenly spread over the Dijon mustard then top with the grated cheese then sliced (deseeded) tomatoes. Sprinkle over some Provençal herbs, like thyme or dried Herbes de Provence and a zig-zag with a little olive oil. For more, see the guide to fresh herbs.

Even better, add a few olives - either before baking or plopped on top before serving.

How to Serve

Serve the tomato tart warm from the oven with a simple green salad and a chilled rosé de Provence for a real taste of France's sunny south. For a Provençal buffet lunch, serve with a classic Niçoise salad - the flavours are great together.