Slow-roasted tomato and caramelised onion tart with white bean puree

This is a vegan riff on the classic flavours of roasted tomatoes and caramelised onions that are often paired with pastry, together with a creamy but sharp / salty cheese such as goats' or feta.  Here a white bean puree, made creamy with olive oil, pungent with garlic and seasoned with lemon juice and sea salt, takes the place of the cheese.

Pastry:
1 3/4 cups plain flour
pinch salt
125g vegetable shortening, cut into pieces
1/3 - 1/2 cup cold water
1-2 tbs soy milk (optional)

In a food processor (or with a fork or pastry cutter, but that's so much harder work!) pulse flour, salt and vegetable shortening until shortening is in pieces the size of small peas.  Empty mixture into a bowl and sprinkle over cold water (start with 1/3 cup first and add more if needed -- I ended up using a full 1/2 cup plus the soy milk), then mix lightly and quickly with a knife until mixture just comes together into a crumbly, fairly dry dough.  If mix is too dry add more liquid gradually as required to achieve the correct texture.  Wrap mixture in clingfilm, press dough into a ball to encourage it to come together, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Roasted tomatoes and caramelised onions:
~1lb small ripe vine tomatoes (I got 11 in my pack)

Cut tomatoes in half (or thick slices if large), spread on a baking tray, scatter with salt and pepper and roast at 150C for about 20 min or until soft.

3 red onions, finely sliced
1 tsp olive oil
2 tbs balsamic vinegar
2 tbs brown sugar
pinch salt
black pepper

Over low heat, cook onions with oil until very soft (15-20 min), add vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper and continue to simmer until sticky and reduced.

When ready to cook tart, preheat oven to 200C.  Roll out pastry to a rectangle, fold in thirds to form a block, roll out again and fold in thirds the other way, then roll to desired size (mine was about the size of an A4 sheet of paper).  Score a line all the way around, about 1-2cm from the edge, to make a border; form a slight lip around the edge and prick pastry in the middle.  (The aim of all this is to try and get the edge to rise more than the middle... mine ended up pretty flat all round even so!)

Bake pastry until just starting to brown (10-15 min), remove from oven and spread caramelised onions all over, arrange tomatoes on top (squoosh them into the onion a bit), return to oven and bake another 10 min or until pastry is browned and juices bubbling. 

White bean puree
1 tin (400g) butter or cannellini beans
1 tbs olive oil
1 large clove garlic, crushed
zest of half a lemon
lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste
fresh basil, finely sliced

Whizz beans, olive oil, garlic and lemon zest in food processor until smooth puree is formed.  Taste and season as required.

When tart is cooked, dollop heaped teaspoonfuls of puree all over in an apparently-artlessly-random-but-actually-carefully-arranged-to-look-random pattern.  Scatter with basil.  Slice into rectangles and serve with a green leaf salad tossed with a sharp dressing.

The ideal logistical order to prepare all the different components would probably be:

• Slice onions and set over low heat to caramelise
• Turn on oven for tomatoes
• Make pastry to refrigeration step
• Pop tomatoes in to roast
• Go do something else for a bit, keeping an eye on onions and stirring occasionally (add vinegar & sugar when ready and continue to cook)
• When tomatoes are done, remove and crank oven to 200C (alternatively, you can prepare everything to this stage in advance and then just roll and bake when ready)
• Roll pastry and put in to blind-bake 
• (meanwhile, onions should have become ready)
• Top and finish baking
• Meanwhile make bean puree, slice basil
• Serve and enjoy!