Caramelized Onion and Ricotta Tart with Heirloom Tomatoes

After being on hiatus for several months, due to the wedding of my daughter, I have regrouped and am back with new inspiration and motivation to continue my work with the blog.  My primary inspiration for this new appetizer is my neighbor who has been dropping off a bag of fresh picked tomatoes from his garden each week for the past month. I really wanted to find a way to use fresh tomatoes in a more interesting way than my typical BLT. I came across this recipe in the March 2013 issue of Delicious and thought I would give it a try.  I served it as an appetizer for Sunday dinner to the delight of all. So fresh and so summery!

Ingredients
1 sheet prepared pie crust at room temperature
3 tbsp butter
6 Scallions thinly sliced
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp brown sugar
4 oz. ricotta cheese
4 eggs
1/2 cup cream
1/2 cup finely grated pecorino cheese
5 small to medium sized heirloom tomatoes in a variety of colors
Bunch of Basil leaves
Olive oil to serve
Kosher salt
Fresh cracked pepper

Method
Cover a loose-bottomed tart pan with one sheet of a prepared pie crust and gently press along the edges trimming any excess.  Prick base with a fork and chill for 30 minutes to firm up.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until dry and golden then remove from the oven and cool.  

Meanwhile, melt butter in a frypan over medium heat, add scallions and cook for 5-6 minutes until soft and golden. Add balsamic and sugar, then cook stirring for a further 1 minute until sugar has dissolved and balsamic has reduced.

Transfer onion mixture to the cooled tart shell and top with evenly spaced small dollops of ricotta. Whisk eggs, cream and pecorino, then season with salt and freshly cracked pepper. Pour the egg mixture into the baked tart shell over the ricotta dollops. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the filling is just set. Let cool for 10 minutes. 

Thinly slice the tomatoes and drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar then season with salt and pepper. Transfer tart to a plate. Arrange the tomato slices on top and sprinkle with finely grated pecorino cheese. Sprinkle with basil leaves and drizzle with olive oil. Slice and serve immediately.