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Milk Street’s done it again! They are always super flavorful while being as kitchen-efficient as possible. Milk Street Vegetables is delicious and off the beaten path. I found that while I played in the book, I was centering dinner around the produce and coming up with a little coordinating protein and fresh fruit. Fabulous! Yeah. Totally giftable!

I’ll tell you all about the book and the dishes we tried in a minute, but first I wanted to give you a recipe to try. Tomato tart with olives and Gruyere. The flavor is gorgeous and it’s a total looker. And as frosting on that glorious cake, it’s ridiculously easy and quick. Rich puff pastry with earthy tomatoes and onions, briny olives and capers, mustard for a sharp flavor pop, finished with herby fresh basil kisses. We loved everything about this and it’s truly Tuesday night easy. Hope you love it, too!

A huge thanks to the folks at Milk Street and Voracious for letting me share this and two more upcoming recipes with you!

Excerpted from MILK STREET VEGETABLES by Christopher Kimball. Copyright © 2021 by CPK Media, LLC. Photography by Connie Miller of CB Creative, Used with permission of Voracious, an imprint of Little, Brown and Company. New York, NY. All rights reserved.

Tomato Tart with Olives and Gruyère

A sheet of frozen puff pastry, thawed and rolled into a slightly larger rectangle, is the crust for this simple but impressive savory tart. We toss the sliced tomatoes and onion with salt and pepper to season the vegetables while also allowing them to release some of their moisture for both better texture and flavor after baking. Using the tines of a fork to poke holes in the rolled-out pastry prevents the center from becoming too puffy, but leave a 1-inch border around the edges so the pastry forms a light, crisp outer crust.

START TO FINISH: 40 MINUTES SERVINGS: 4 TO 6

1 pound plum tomatoes, cored and cut crosswise into ¼-inch slices
½ small red onion, thinly sliced
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
4 ounces Gruyère OR provolone cheese, shredded (1 cup)
½ cup pitted black olives OR green olives OR a combination, chopped
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more to serve

Don’t use regular round tomatoes in this recipe. Plum tomatoes, which are relatively firm and dry, work best.

Heat the oven to 450°F with a rack in the middle position. Line a rimmed baking sheet with kitchen parchment. In a large bowl, toss together the tomatoes, onion and ½ teaspoon each salt and pepper; set aside. With a rolling pin, roll the pastry into a 10-by-14-inch rectangle, then place on the prepared baking sheet. Using a paring knife, score a 1-inch frame around the edge of the pastry, then poke holes in the pastry with a fork, avoiding the border. Spread the mustard on the pastry, avoiding the border, then sprinkle with the cheese.
Using a slotted spoon, distribute the tomato-onion mixture in an even layer on top; discard the liquid remaining in the bowl. Sprinkle with the olives and drizzle with the oil. Bake until the pastry is golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool for 5 to 10 min- utes before slicing. Serve drizzled with additional oil.

Optional garnish: Chopped fresh oregano OR torn fresh basil OR chopped drained capers OR a combination

Let me tell you about that book….

Eggplant with pomegranate, molasses, fennel, and herbs. Love the contrast of the crunchy licorice-y fennel against the roasted eggplant. It gets two pomegranate treatments – both fresh arils and pomegranate molasses. Tons of herbs. Fabulous. Note that there are optional pistachios mentioned in the directions, but not the ingredients, so I wrote them in for next time.

Roasted mushrooms with garlic, lemon and parsley. Yum! The flavors really pop in this. Like a roasted mushroom panzanella. I just made Italian sausages and grapes to go with it, but it can totally be a stand alone, too.

Braised and glazed carrots and parsnips with orange and cardamom. These are so sweet and bright tasting. I made roast chicken to go with it, but any roast or Swedish meatballs would be perfect, too.

Skillet-charred Brussels sprouts with garlic, anchovy and chili. These were the best Brussels sprouts recipe ever. Anchovies are so under-utilized and give such a flavorful salty punch to the sprouts. Total keeper. I made an herby garlicky wine and mustard glazed salmon and fresh blueberries to play with the little honey sweetness of the sprouts.

Tomato tart with olives and Gruyere. The flavor is gorgeous and it’s a total looker. And as frosting on that glorious cake, it’s ridiculously easy and quick.

Roasted acorn squash with orange herb salad and hazelnuts. I made a garlicky herby roast pork to go with this.

Sweet and sour roasted peppers with feta and mint. Great flavor balance.

Roasted rutabaga and pears with browned butter, honey and rosemary. Wow! This is so interesting and delicious! Such a wonderfully wintery roasted fruit and vegetable dish. Perfection next to a roast!

Patatas Bravas. I could write poetry to these. Super crispy exterior with a pillowy interior. The textures are potato dreams. And there’s a smoky paprika sauce and a garlic aioli for drizzling, dipping, and mopping that put these way over the top.

Zucchini with lemon, za’atar, and tahini yogurt. We loved the deep roasted vegetables against the creamy, nutty, tangy yogurt with a bright citrus pop and the strong flavors of the za’atar.

Soy-glazed braised brussels sprouts. I actually made this one because it’s one of those where I, and probably you, already have everything on hand. The mirin, sake, soy, and brown sugar is a really soulful combination. The Brussels sprouts really popped. The optional shichimi togarashi dusting is fabulous, too.

Baked Zucchini and Gruyere Omelet. Delicious. The zucchini, Gruyere, ham, scallions, and eggs play beautifully together. The texture is nice and surprisingly light, too.

Hoisin broccoli and tofu traybake. This is not a looker, but it’s so delicious! I just made a little rice and riced cauliflower blend to go with it.

Lebanese-style greens with caramelized onions. This is fabulous! Two pounds of collard greens, and it’s so yummy that it wasn’t quite enough for 4 people. I made kibbeh-style meatballs to go with it. I think it would be really fun for BBQ, too.

Rigatoni with broccoli-lemon sauce. Wow. This was a really unusual pesto-ish sauce. The broccoli and lemon play beautifully together. And the romano and walnuts finish them off perfectly.

“Creamed” corn with scallions. Okay, this is terribly out of season, so I had no business trying it now with only lean winter corn available. But it was fantastic creamed corn. I can’t wait for a do-over next summer when corn’s at its peak!

I’m making a few more dishes in the next few days and I’ll update this as I do. I didn’t want to hold off posting in case you wanted this for a fabulous holiday gift. Here’s what’s coming:

(Update 12/21: Made the rest!)

Jicama and orange salad with queso fresco. This is really refreshing and crisp tasting. The citrus and jicama are so nice and light and the tangy feta and herbs dresses it up perfectly.

Basque-style leek and potato soup. This is divine. A whole head of garlic is browned and the simmered in the soup and finally mashed into a paste giving the soup such a special flavor! There’s an optional garnish of smoked trout. Now I want to smoke a trout. That sounds fantastic!

Lemony wine-braised artichokes. The recipe calls for frozen artichokes so this is really easy. They’re braised in lemon, wine, garlic, onion and carrots. It reminds me so much of an artichoke dish from the old Bistro 110 in Chicago. That had brie in it, too. I think I’ll slather brie on toasted baguettes to go with it next time. This is a total keeper.

Spaghetti squash with lemon, cream, and herbs. Yes! Total yes! I love Milk Street’s lemony pasta. This does the same thing!!! It works perfectly with the spaghetti squash. Lemony, creamy, and then cold weather cozy blasted with pumpkin seeds and sage.

Yogurt-roasted carrots with warm spices. I burned these. I’m not kidding. They disappeared off the counter one by one as my family walked by. They still loved them even though they were extra crispy. I need a do-over. LOL!

*I received a copy to explore and share my thoughts. My opinions are all sincere.

Need more Milk Street? Here are a few more recipes and books of theirs I reviewed…

Sumac-Spiced Chicken Cutlets with Tomato-Onion Salad recipe from Milk Street Tuesday Nights Mediterranean

Spaghetti with Lemon Pesto recipe and cookbook review: Milk Street Tuesday Nights Mediterranean

Jalapeno-Apricot Glazed Chicken Thighs and Cookbook review: Milk Street: Cookish (Cookish)

Milk Street’s recipes for Israeli Hummus with Spiced Beef Topping and Lebanese-Style Tabbouleh (The Milk Street Cookbook)

Beef, Orange and Olive Stew (The New Rules)

Maple-Whiskey Pudding Cakes (Tuesday Nights)

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Milk Street Vegetables

The Milk Street Cookbook (5th anniversary edition). I have the year one version. I just ordered this and Milk Street Fast and Slow (Instant Pot) as a treat yo’self! I can’t wait for them to get here!