Calabrian Tomato Tart

Crust

2½

cups all-purpose flour (or 1½

cups all-purpose flour plus 1 cup whole-wheat flour)

1½

cups grated pecorino Romano cheese

½

to 1 teaspoon ground black pepper

4 ounces lard

¼

cup dry white wine, or more as needed

2 eggs, lightly beaten

For the topping:

3 pints cherry tomatoes, halved

2 or 3 jalapeno chilies or 1 to 2 Anaheim chilies, seeded and thinly sliced

Fleur de sel or other finishing salt

To make the crust, in a food processor combine the flour, cheese, black pepper, lard, wine and all but 2 tablespoons of the eggs. Pulse briefly, adding another 1 or 2 tablespoons of wine or water if needed, to make a soft sticky dough.

Press the dough into a disk, then cover with plastic wrap and let stand for 30 minutes.

Heat the oven to 375 F. Line an 11-by-14-inch baking sheet with parchment paper.

Transfer the dough to the baking sheet, stretching it and pressing with wet fingers to cover the bottom. Brush the dough with the reserved egg, then arrange the tomatoes over the dough.

Scatter the chopped chilies around the tomatoes, pressing carefully on the tomatoes and chilies so they stick to the dough. Sprinkle with salt and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the tomatoes are wrinkled with a few black spots.

Let cool on a rack and cut into pieces to serve warm or at room temperature.

Serves four.

Cook's notes: If you'd rather not use the lard in the crust, you can substitute a blend of olive oil and unsalted butter. If you use a blend, aim for about a total of 1/2 cup. Sliced full-size tomatoes can be substituted for the cherry tomatoes.

Adapted from "Mediterranean Hot and Spicy" by Aglaia Kremezi (2009 Broadway Books)