Savory Tarts

[sadistick]

Hey Folks,

On Friday my family is going to be doing a wine dinner for my aunt's b-day.

I have chosen to do 2-4 different tarts...This is going to be a long evening of eating and drinking, so there will be a lot of food, but spaced over the course of a night.

I have some ideas in my head, but I respect the vast knowledge which congregates here at our beloved egullet, and would like any ideas or suggestions that any of you may have!

I will be using my grandmothers famed olive oil dough for all these, and the following are ideas which I have thus far for my variety of tarts.

1, Wood oven roasted heirloom tomatoes, caramalized spanish onions, black olives.

2, Oven roasted tomatoes, roasted garlic, rosemarry, sea salt

3, Sauteed Leeks, thyme, Granda padana sprinkling...

One thing to note, we will be having a cheese course, so as much as I want to do some really yummy ones with cheese, I must refrain as I want to keep in minds everyone's arterial health.

I would love to hear any comments/suggestions any of you may have...

And I think the Savoury Tart concept is something I have not seen here for a while, so this may turn out to be an interesting topic.

Cheers,

-Justin

Edited March 15, 2005 by sadistick (log)

[jayt90]

Genuine mincemeat, aged in a crock, and not too sweet, comes to mind.

My cellar will still be cool for 2 months, so I may start some.

[sadistick]

Sounds like an idea....just have to be carefull not too much liquid content or else the crust wont be crisp.

Come on people, 68 views and one reply! Put your culinary caps on and help me out!

[Carolyn Tillie]

I'm curious about the wine you are serving -- honestly, the first two don't appeal to me for two reasons; 1. I can't eat tomatos, 2. Some cooked tomatoes can be too acidic for wine and make heaftier reds taste more tannic.

So.... with that in mind, let start looking at the arterial problem. There is one thing to eat cold and/or unmelted cheese with wine and another as a sort of binder in tarts. I wouldn't immediately dismiss using cheese in some tarts for that very reason as it would still be a contrast to the cheese course being served elsewhere.

- Pissaladiere: A caramlized onion tart with anchovies or fish paste. (Recipes here, here, or here.

- Mushrooms -- lots and lots of mushrooms; wild, chantrelle, wood ear, etc... Recipes here or here. (BTW, this is a GREAT suggestion if you are planning on serving hearty reds -- will complement very well).

- Quiche -- again, discounting the arterial factor, using a little egg as a binder could hold together a great plethora of roasted vegetables: sauteed artichoke hearts, zucchini, spring onion, aspragus tips, portobello mushrooms -- (actually this is Queen Elizabeth's favorite quiche).

- Spinach, roasted red peppers, olives, mushrooms, and feta cheese.

- Pizza style galette... Roll out the dough, rub with oil, and top with sliced (pre-grilled) sausage, a few greens, some roasted garlic, and a LITTLE bit of parmesan cheese: Broil until just melted.

Just beginning to get rolling....

[sadistick]

Hey Carolyn,

Everyone will be bringing a bottle from their collection, I know my uncles and dad will be bring some older french and italian wines, unfortunetly being a new collector, and not willing to spend $500 on a bottle, I decided to go for something different, more 'new world' I read a review in wine spectator about the Claredon Hills Shiraz, which got a 93 , and the guy at Vintages recommended it as well, I tried to keep it under $100.

Sorry to hear you cant eat tomatoes...What I do with both tomatoes is I will let some kosher salt sit on the halved tomatoes to get out some of the liquid, and removing the center seed core, thus taking a majority of the acidity out....as well as the slow roasting process in the wood oven helps to remove some acidity as well.

I dont want the tarts to be cheesy (other than the leek one) simply because that will make people too full for the other 5 some odd courses...

Mushrooms I was thinking about, but my cousin is doing wild mushrooms 3 ways for his course, so I dont want to get too shroomy...

I like the idea of the spinach and roasted red peppers...maybe some roasted garlic as well...good idea for sure!

Keep it coming...Thanks for the ideas Carolyn.

Cheers.

[Lone Star]

How about:

Spicy minced roasted chicken with almonds

or

Salmon with asparagus

[chow guy]

I love a caramelized onion tart with fesh figs and a garnish of balsamic syrup.

[SuzySushi]

How about:

Zucchini and prosciutto

Caramelized onions and prosciutto

Roasted asparagus

[waldorf]

I love a caramelized onion tart with fesh figs and a garnish of balsamic syrup.

←

Sounds delicious. Do you have a recipe to share?

[francois]

You could probably adapt a few pizza ideas to savory tarts. Look in Peter Reihart's 'American Pie' for some ideas.

For exemple:

Fully bake a round of tart dough. Then put a bit of sour cream/dill/caper dressing. Then a some thinly sliced onions. Then thinly sliced tomatoes. Cover with smoked salmon. A few drops of lemon juice, dill sprigs, capers, and a bit of black pepper.

Or bake the tart with an onion marmalade, a bit of creamy blue cheese and walnuts (I think that would be delicious!)

[francois]

Another nice idea, depending on how large of a group you have: small individual tatins of confit tomatoes

Make the confit tomatoes: Skin small tomatoes (after droping them in boiling water for 10 seconds). Cut them in 1/2. Put in the oven, in about 1/4 inch of olive oil and a few basil leaves. 205-275. About 1 1/2 hour.

Lightly oil small individual tart molds, if possible the same size as the tomates. Put a tomato half in each. Cover with a thin round of dough. Bake 375 for about 25 minutes (until nice and gloden). Unmold while hot.

I prefer them after they have cooled slighly. With a few small basil leaves and a bit of basil oil.

[sadistick]

Francois,

I absolutely love your idea for the tomatoe confit...I will be doing this instead of the oven dried tomatoes...Sounds amazing!!!

Merci!

[sadistick]

OhOHhhh

I have a question for you all!

I am debating whether to partially bake the olive oil dough without the topings, for half the baking time, put the ingredients on, then finish baking, or bake the entier time with the ingredients on from the start...

My only reason for asking this is I am thinking maybe if I leave the ingredients on from the start the crust will not be as nice, possibly a bit soggy...

Opinions?

[Carolyn Tillie]

OhOHhhh

I have a question for you all!

I am debating whether to partially bake the olive oil dough without the topings, for half the baking time, put the ingredients on, then finish baking, or bake the entier time with the ingredients on from the start...

My only reason for asking this is I am thinking maybe if I leave the ingredients on from the start the crust will not be as nice, possibly a bit soggy...

Opinions?

←

Perfect -- essentially just like blind-baking a pie-crust, mostly baking your dough would be preferable then all you would have to do is top it (with ingredients that wouldn't require a whole lot of cooking, I would think) and then finishing in the oven.

[patti]

I don't recall where I saw it, but I recently saw a recipe for a crab and mozzarella tart that sounded good. The shell was blind baked and topped with arugala, lump crabmeat, tomatoes, and mozzarella.

[sadistick]

Thanks for the help ladies, I dont have MUCH experience in baking, but baking it 60% then putting on ingredients seemed more logical to me...

I just spoke to my mushroom guy, apparently he got in some Black Trumpets and Hedgehog (never tried these!) mushrooms, may have to make a 4th tart now

[francois]

OhOHhhh

I have a question for you all!

I am debating whether to partially bake the olive oil dough without the topings, for half the baking time, put the ingredients on, then finish baking, or bake the entier time with the ingredients on from the start...

My only reason for asking this is I am thinking maybe if I leave the ingredients on from the start the crust will not be as nice, possibly a bit soggy...

Opinions?

←

I think this all depends on the topping. Sometime I use a baking stone to make sure the bottom of the crust is well cooked.

[Chufi]

One of my favorite savoury tarts is mushrooms and leeks:

Leeks sweated in butter until soft.

Mushrooms seared in hot dry pan until they begin to leak their juice.

Bound with a dollop of creme fraiche, flavored with thyme, a scrap of garlic, and some nutmeg. (Don't omit the nutmeg)

Sprinkled with a little bit of gruyere or other cheese.

Another great one is caramelized belgian endive (endives quartered and briefly panfried) with pancetta.

Edited March 16, 2005 by Chufi (log)

[DTBarton]

thin slices of russet potato layered with sauteed sweet onion or shredded leeks, sauce each layer with a little white sauce with gruyere. Give the sauce a good shot of black pepper, cayenne if you like and a healthy shot of fresh thyme.

[MsMelkor]

We just harvested a bunch of onions from our garden, so I made a carmelized onion tart tonight. After I made it I was thinking I should have added some butternut squash, since we still have a few left over from our harvest at the end of last year.

If you partially blind bake the crust (just until it starts turning light golden brown), you can still use a filling that needs to be in the oven for a long time.

[forever_young_ca]

Here is a BBC recipe that I have used many times http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/database...with_4991.shtml

It is a tomato tart tatin made with onion confit. It is made in individual servings and served with a goat cheese arugula (rocket) cream. Delicious and presents beautifully. It is also great as a sophisticated first course.

[davebr]

I made a savory one last night---onion and pistacio to accompany foie pate and apple-cognac gastrique

[cteavin]

 

(Recipe Follows)
I don't have a name for these particular dishes -- I've been making them since university -- and I'd love to hear your ideas on what to call them.

In short, they are raw or roasted vegetables folded into a Béchamel. You can add (what I call mix-ins) to enrich the flavors, but they are not needed. They simple but elegant and are an excellent way to improve any meal.

Here is a link to the video detailing all of the steps.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixqB1HfK_bw
 

Base
1 prebaked tart shell or pastry
2 cups of milk
40 grams of white flour (approx. 4tbs)
56 grams of butter (approx. 3 tbs)
1-2 cups of minced vegetable (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots are good options) OR
1 -2 cups roasted vegetables, chopped (such as kabocha, turnips, parsnips)Salt to taste.

Optional Mix-Ins
1/2 - 1 cup cheese (parmesan or Swiss cheeses are especially good)
1 teaspoon fresh herbs
1 egg yolk
1/8 teaspoon of nutmeg
Minced bacon or ham
Make the White Sauce

1. In a saucepan melt the butter.

2. Add all the flour at once and cook for about 3 minutes.

3. With a whisk in hand, add all of the milk at once and stir quickly and constantly until the flour mixture is dissolved. (The milk MUST be cold. If the milk is warm, you will create lumps in the sauce.)

4. With a wooden spoon or rubber spatula, continue to stir the mixture until it thickens. This should take 2 - 4 minutes over medium heat.

5. Add all of your minced vegetable and stir to incorporate.

6. Add in any mix-ins you would like to incorporate.

7. If you plan to bake, remove from heat and pour into a prepared tart shell and bake for 40 minutes at 180°C/350°F.

8. If you plan to serve without baking, continue to cook on the stove top for 5-10 minutes stirring constantly to "cook" the vegetable to your liking.

9. However you prepare it, it will thicken as it cools to room temperature.

10. Serve at room temperature or cold.

Note: As a failsafe, you can prepare a mixture of tablespoon corn/potato starch dissolved in 3 tablespoons water. If your sauce is too liquid by the end of cooking (at the end of step 6) begin to add this solution to the mixture and stir vigorously to quickly thicken the sauce