Tomato Tart Recipe
by Sommer Collier — last updated on May 7, 2026 
When tomatoes are at their best, I make this tomato tart recipe on repeat. With a flaky homemade crust, a creamy cheese base, and layers of fresh tomatoes, it’s one of those easy summer recipes that feels special without taking much effort. I love that I can swap the cheese depending on what’s in my fridge.
I learned to make traditional tomato pies shortly after moving to the South. The comforting combination of freshly-baked garden produce, molten cheese, and pastry crust is hard to beat. But, I wanted to create something a bit more elegant and show-stopping with summer tomatoes, which is where this tomato tart came in: a simple, winning combination of a cheesy herb filling, homemade crust, and juicy tomatoes! Consider it an updated version of a Southern tomato pie, but called a tart as it is the complete opposite of the winter comfort offered by other savory pies like my fan-favorite potato pie.
PS – My tamale pie is also a huge fan favorite!
Laurie – ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ I had a million cherry tomatoes to use up from my parents garden, so I decided to give this a try. My entire family was skeptical, except me….I thought it was gorgeous! My 12 year old son was already negotiating with me, but to my great surprise, every single one of us loved it. My daughter said it tasted like something from a fancy restaurant and claimed that she would get all the leftovers. Not only beautiful, but delicious!
Table of Contents
Sommer’s Recipe Highlights
Beautiful yet simple – Considering how good this tart looks, even I sometimes can’t believe all you need to do is mix the cheese filling, add some tomatoes, and make a simple pie crust. It’s so easy to make, even with that buttery, made-from-scratch crust. (Though I won’t judge if you use a shortcut version from the store, but like with my tomato pie recipe, I do recommend using the tart crust recipe below if you have the time!)
Change the cheese, keep the mayo – The cheese filling under the tomatoes is a luxurious, southern blend of creamy mayonnaise, cheese, and herbs I absolutely adore. I’ve developed this recipe using provolone cheese for its delicate flavor and amazing melting properties, but you can use any cheese you like that shreds easily and melts smoothly.
Key Ingredients and Tips
- All-purpose flour and cornstarch – I find that using a mix creates the best flaky pie crust!
- Butter – You want this to be fridge-cold for the best flaky crust.
- Grape or cherry tomatoes – I’ve designed this recipe to work with any small tomato, kept whole, so if you have a load of summer garden tomatoes that fit this description, go ahead!
- Sharp provolone cheese – If you don’t have any, A Spicy Perspective readers have told me this tart also works really well with fontina and white cheddar!
- Fresh basil leaves – I find basil is the best herb to bring that summer flavor to this tart, but if you don’t have any you could use snipped chives. It won’t be the same, though!
- Mayonnaise – Yes, the key to my tomato tart is mixing mayonnaise with cheese. If you think that mayonnaise is mostly egg, it makes sense really.
How to Make
Find the full recipe with detailed instructions, storage tips, and a video tutorial in the printable form at the bottom of the post!
For the crust – First, to make the crust I preheat the oven to 375°F. In a food processor, I combine the flour, cornstarch, butter, and salt, then pulse until the mixture forms very fine crumbs, scraping down the sides a couple of times as I go. Then I add the egg and continue pulsing until a dough forms. The dough should be fairly firm, but it comes together well.
Shape the crust – I gather the dough into a ball and press it evenly into a 9-inch tart pan, making sure to cover the entire surface. (Alternatively, I can roll it out into a 12-inch circle first.) I crimp the edges, then refrigerate the crust for 30 minutes.
Prep the basil – While that chills, I then roughly chop ¼ cup of the basil, stacking and rolling the remaining basil to slice into thin ribbons to use as the garnish.
Make the filling – Next, I mix the cheese, mayo, chopped basil, green onions, and pepper until smooth.
Add the filling – I then spread the mixture over the bottom of the tart shell. Make sure it’s in a nice even layer.
Assemble the tart – To assemble the tart, I arrange the grape tomatoes on top and gently press them down into the cheese mixture.
Bake and cool – Then I bake the tart for about 35 minutes, until the crust edges are golden brown and the cheese is bubbling. Finally, I allow it to cool for 10 minutes, then sprinkle the sliced basil ribbons over the top before serving slices of the tart still warm.
Recipe Variations
- Sometimes, if I want to add a little extra protein, I add 1/2 cup drained cottage cheese to the filling – it lightens up the tart but still adds a delicious creaminess!
- If you want to change up the herbs, I’ve found fresh thyme works beautifully. Parsley and chives also work well, and I think rosemary would too, but only if you finely chop it so you don’t get woody pieces in your tart.
- When I’m pressed for time but I still want to make this tart, I use a pre-made crust. One look at the comments section is enough to tell me that the ones from Whole Foods are your overwhelming favorites for this recipe! A crust from the store is also a good way of making this recipe gluten-free.
Servings Suggestions
Serving this tomato tart as a vegetarian main dish, my favorite sides are my Couscous Salad (with Pickled Vegetables), Farro Salad with Kale and Artichokes, and my Cucumber and Onion Salad (with Dill).
If I’m serving this tart as a side dish, I often pair it with my Grilled Blackened Chicken, Pork Chops with Pork Chop Seasoning, Broccoli Salad with Bacon, or my Cool and Creamy Grape Salad.
Storage Notes
Store leftovers of this tart in the in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-4 days. Like with my Italian tomato pie, I find leftovers taste best if I’ve had time to bring them up to room temperature. Or, you can wrap the tart dish with plastic wrap for overnight storage at room temperature. But if you do this, you really should eat it the next day, and perhaps give this a miss if you’re experiencing a heatwave!
If you want to reheat slices, do this in the oven rather than the microwave, which will make the pie crust soggy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Layer the crust while raw and bake the tart all together. If you are concerned about the bottom baking through, you can place the fresh tomato tart on the lowest rack so the bottom of the crust is closer to the heat source. I’ve also had success baking tarts on a pre-heated baking tray.
I do prefer this pie with a homemade crust, but I know it can be a lot of work sometimes. I have made this with store-bought, and it was still delicious. Yes, you can also use a puff pastry sheet rolled and cut to fit the pan. Still bake according to the recipe below.
This is one of the things I love the most about this recipe, it is delicious served hot, warm, or at room temperature. It’s even tasty right from the fridge, though room temp is better.
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More Recipes With Tomatoes
Tomato Tart Recipe
Video
Ingredients
For the Crust:
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch + 2 teaspoons
- 6 tablespoons butter diced
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
For the Filling:
- 2 pints grape or cherry tomatoes rinsed and dried
- 1 1/2 cups sharp provolone grated (or fontina)
- 1/2 cup basil leaves divided
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/3 cup chopped green onions
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- For the Crust: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a food processor, combine the flour, cornstarch , butter, and salt. Pulse the mixture until it forms very tiny bits. Add one egg and pulse until a dough forms. This dough is rather tough, but it does come together nicely.
- Gather the dough into a ball. Then press the dough in to the 9-inch tart pan, covering every bit. (You can roll the dough out to a 12-inch circle if you want.) Crimp the edges, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Roughly chop 1/4 cup of the basil leaves. Stack and roll the remaining basil leaves and cut them into thin ribbons. Save the ribbons for the end. Mix the cheese, mayo, chopped basil, green onions and pepper in a bowl. Spread the mixture over the bottom of the tart shell.
- Top with grape tomatoes and press them down. Bake for 35 minutes, until the crust edges are golden-brown and the cheese is bubbling up.
- Cool for 10 minutes, then sprinkle with 1/4 cup sliced basil ribbons. Serve warm.
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I have made this recipe before and making it again tonight since I have tomatoe plants producing lots of product…… I use a premade pastry dough from Whole Foods…… Dufour is delicious and flaky. I do bake it a bit before I add the cheese and tomatoes….
Hi Sue,
You shouldn’t need to pre-bake the pastry. But if you are worried about, it won’t hurt to give it a head start!
unfortunately I am allergic to cheese and eggs so couldn’t use the heese or mayonnaise in this recipe.
where i live in France there is no such thing as eggless mayonnaise.
As is usual for me I use creme faiche instead of eggs.
I substituted the cheese with caramelised onions, and ended up with a delicious tart.
I would give anything to be able to eat cheese and eggs,but sadly this isn’t to be.
unfortunately my other food allergies are Pork , lamb, Honey and kiwi fruit.
The latter causing me to go into an anaphylaxic shock.
I cook every day and am always looking out for new recipes.
Thanks for the tomato tart one, which with a few tweets turned out lovely.
Delicious! Perfect tart for my garden veggies. I used the cherry toms, basil, and subbed chives for the green onion. I used havarti and it was so tasty. Next time, and yes there will be one, I’m going to add some cornmeal into the crust for some added crunch! Thanks for the recipe, it’s a new fam fave!
I’ve made this recipe several times….i buy a premade crust from Whole Foods. I do pre bake the crust for a short time…
Nice using grape tomatoes as they are always available in the Midwest even when regular tomatoes are not.
This was excellent and a do over! I used a refrigerated pie crust and a cheddar cheese mix since I happened to have both on hand. I may try pre-cooking the crust a bit to help the bottom maintain a bit of crispness. Great way to use the tomatoes in our garden
Such a unique recipe! thank you so much for sharing!
What a great & delicious way to use up tomatoes! They taste so good with the cheese!
I had no clue how this was going to taste but after I made it, I absolutely loved it! thank you so much for sharing this recipe
The flavors on this tart were amazing–however, mine came out a gooey, semi-liquefied mess! I used fontina and cherry tomatoes; not sure if it was a higher moisture fontina or what, but there is a lot of oil and it’s sort of a gooey, cheesy pile on the plate, rather than a slice. The crust isn’t holding together; it basically falls apart under all the cheese and juicy tomatoes. I followed the recipe as written, and even put my pan nearer to the bottom to ensure the crust was cooked through, so I’m perplexed as to why it’s such a mess. The taste is fantastic, but the textures came out all wrong. Thoughts as to what went wrong? I’d make this recipe again if I could get it to hold form better.
Hi Artemisia,
Sorry that happened! I’m wondering about your oven… It might be worth buying a hanging oven thermometer to check the accuracy of the temperature. If it’s off, you can then recalibrate the oven to make sure it is baking properly.
I made it for dinner for my family of 3 with a kale salad. They loved it ! I used a combination of different cheeses: provolone, parmesan, and cheddar. I also used 1/4th cup yogurt, 1/4 cup mayo. Sprinkled the top with tarragon in addition to the basil. The crust was tasty and held up well with the cheese mixture and all the cherry tomato juices. I will keep this recipe and try other variations.