Written by Tom Hunt - award winning eco-chef and Guardian columnist

This is a simple but striking tart that transforms two of my favourite deli products, baby artichokes and salted capers into something spectacular. The halved baby artichokes are laid in concentric circles on top of a little sea salt and generous turn of freshly cracked black pepper, aged balsamic, lemon zest, mint, garlic, capers and olive oil which all caramelise together beautifully in the oven. This is topped with blobs of fresh ricotta and a sheet of puff pastry. Once baked and caramelised the tart is flipped and finished with extra mint, parsley and parmesan.

Tom’s art of seasoning tip: Salt your food with preserved and fermented ingredients like capers, parmesan and miso to add complexity. The salt from foods like preserved artichokes, capers and parmesan will naturally season foods in the most flavourful way.

When cooking with salty foods, season with caution tasting and only adding more salt if needed in small amounts. As the dish cooks, the salt will season the food through osmosis and diffusion. 

Ingredients

• Sea salt, to taste  
  
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste 
  
• 2 x 300–350g jars baby artichokes, drained and patted dry
  
• 2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
  
• 1 tbsp aged balsamic vinegar
  
• Zest of ½ lemon (use the juice to dress your salad)
  
• 2 tbsp capers
  
• 1 clove garlic, thinly sliced
  
• 6 tbsp ricotta
  
• 2 sprigs mint, stalks finely chopped, leaves roughly chopped
  
• 3 sprigs parsley, stalks finely chopped, leaves roughly chopped
  
• 30g parmesan, finely grated
  
• 350g puff pastry (store-bought or homemade rough puff)
• Green salad to serve, dressed how you like (optional) 
  

Method: 

1. Preheat the oven and a baking tray to 190C. 
2. Place a sheet of parchment on a baking tray. Drizzle with the olive oil, balsamic, a little sea salt (the artichokes and capers are already seasoned) and plenty of freshly cracked black pepper to taste. Next scatter over the capers, garlic slices and lemon zest.
3. Halve the artichokes if they’re not already and arrange them cut-side down in concentric circles, starting from the middle and working out. Dot with ricotta and season again with a little salt, pepper, lemon zest and olive oil.
4. Roll the pastry onto a lightly floured surface to a round slightly larger than the artichokes. Carefully lay it on top, tucking the edges down the sides. Bake in the hot oven for 30–35 minutes until the pastry is puffed and golden.
5. Allow to rest for five minutes, then invert onto a large plate, peeling away the parchment to reveal the glossy, caramelised artichokes. Finish with the mint, parsley and some finely grated parmesan and serve warm (or at room temperature - both are delicious) with a simple green salad dressed how you like.