When Shavuot comes around each year, all the Jews I know immediately go for tried and true blintzes and cheesecake. But the world of dairy-rific options is nearly endless. In fact, I view cooking and baking with dairy a far more interesting proposition than cooking with meat, I mean, everything is better with butter, no?

Using good quality mozzarella, and ripe tomatoes is key to this tasty, creamy tart. If you are not up for making your own crust, you can buy a prepared crust easily in the freezer aisle of most supermarkets.

An open faced tart is a great option for a light lunch over Shavuot. I would suggest serving this with a simply dressed mesclun salad and some soup.

Tomato Mozzarella Tart

· 1 prepared tart crust (I like Julia Child’s recipe, which you can find here)

· 4 medium sized tomatoes, sliced thin
· 1 large ball (around 8 ounces) of buffalo mozzarella
· ¼ cup olive oil
· 2 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped
· 2 garlic cloves, minced
· Salt and pepper to taste
· 2 Tbsp finely grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Set out sheets of paper towel, and remove excess water from the tomato slices by laying out the tomatoes on top of the towels.

Slice mozzarella into even, circle slices. Layer the tomato slices and mozzarella slices alternately, creating a circle pattern and ensuring that the mozzarella is covering as much of the bottom of the crust as possible.

In a small bowl, mix together olive oil, basil, garlic, salt and pepper. When thoroughly combined, drizzle over tomato and mozzarella.

If desired, sprinkle parmesan over tart before baking. The extra cheese will add a nice crusty layer to the tart after it is baked, and also add an extra layer of flavor.

Bake at 375 degrees for 45-50 minutes, until golden brown.

The tart can be served warmed, or at room temperature, perfect for a yom tov lunch.

Enjoy!