Roasted Tomato Ricotta Bites

To roast the tomatoes: Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Cut the tomatoes in half, and place on a baking sheet cut side up. Sprinkle over them the garlic, thyme, salt, pepper, and sugar. Drizzle with the olive oil and place in the oven. Bake for about one hour or until they have started to shrivel yet still remain moist. Then remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly grease muffin cups. Cut the puff pastry into squares slightly larger than your muffin cups and center one square of dough into each cup. In a small bowl, mix together the ricotta cheese and fresh herbs. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon a couple of spoonfuls of the ricotta mixture into each muffin cup and then bake for about 15 minutes or until the ricotta has puffed and set and the pastry has turned golden brown. Cool to room temperature. Carefully remove from the muffin pan and place on a platter.

Before serving, top each bite with half a roasted cherry tomato and a tiny dollop of pesto. Serve.