Thursday, March 26, 2009

Tomato and Goat Cheese Tarts -- Barefoot Bloggers


Our second Barefoot Bloggers recipe of March is Ina's Tomato and Goat Cheese Tarts, picked by Anne of Anne Strawberry, thanks Anne! I changed this recipe up a little bit, Ina's recipe uses a puff pastry crust and I was more in the mood for a crunchy traditional tart crust. I've been on a pistachio kick lately so I fiddled with a tart dough recipe and added pistachios. Perfect!


I also swapped out onions for mushrooms, parmesan for pecorino romano, used plain goat cheese and cherry tomatoes. These were a wonderful grown-up savory treat. Here is Ina's recipe -- it is so versatile and I think it welcomes any changes to personalize these yummy tarts.

Tomato Goat Cheese Tarts

1 package (17.3 ounces/2 sheets) puff pastry, defrosted
Good olive oil
4 cups thinly sliced yellow onions (2 large onions)
3 large garlic cloves, cut into thin slivers
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons dry white wine
2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves
4 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan, plus 2 ounces shaved with a vegetable peeler
4 ounces garlic-and-herb goat cheese (recommended: Montrachet)
1 large tomato, cut into 4 (1/4-inch-thick) slices
3 tablespoons julienned basil leaves

Unfold a sheet of puff pastry on a lightly floured surface and roll it lightly to an 11 by 11-inch square. Using a 6-inch wide saucer or other round object as a guide, cut 2 circles from the sheet of puff pastry, discarding the scraps. Repeat with the second pastry sheet to make 4 circles in all. Place the pastry circles on 2 sheet pans lined with parchment paper and refrigerate until ready to use. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium to low heat and add the onions and garlic. Saute for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring frequently, until the onions are limp and there is almost no moisture remaining in the skillet. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, the wine, and thyme and continue to cook for another 10 minutes, until the onions are lightly browned. Remove from the heat.

Using a sharp paring knife, score a 1/4-inch-wide border around each pastry circle. Prick the pastry inside the score lines with the tines of a fork and sprinkle a tablespoon of grated Parmesan on each round, staying inside the scored border.

Place 1/4 of the onion mixture on each circle, again staying within the scored edge. Crumble 1 ounce of goat cheese on top of the onions. Place a slice of tomato in the center of each tart. Brush the tomato lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with basil, salt, and pepper. Finally, scatter 4 or 5 shards of Parmesan on each tart.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown. The bottom sheet pan may need an extra few minutes in the oven. Serve hot or warm.


starting to saute the mushrooms


the pistachio tart crust before baking


I pre-baked the tartlet crusts for about 10 minutes at 375, here they are at the topping station :)

I think I should have added some more mushrooms, I had some left too, I just was too skimpy putting them on


almost ready to bake... and done!


These were delicious and I had a fun time putting them together. I loved them, even though I was the only person in our home remotely interested in eating anything with goat cheese and tomato (silly picky family), I would still make these again :) I can't wait to try some other adaptations of this versatile recipe -- and I really do want to try this as written with the puff pastry at some point, promise!

18 comments:

Suzie said...

I want to try your pistachio crust. I made mine as per the recipe, but I wished I had some nuts in it too.

NKP said...

Beautiful! The pistachio crust would be amazing with the goat cheese.
And look at the cute little cherry tomato package - adorable.

Anne said...

That crust looks amazing and I love the little tomatoes- yum!

Penny said...

Andrea, Your changes were brilliant. This is a versatile dish and next time I will try the pastry instead of the puff.

Unknown said...

Your tarts look so good! I really need to try this recipe.

Flourchild said...

Great looking tarts..yum they looks so tasty. I love the idea of putting pistachio in the crust.
Im going to bake the Coconut Butter thins today for TWD. The only thing left to get is the parchement paper. I was going to make them with out it, but these seem delicate so I think not!
Have a great day!

Cathy said...

Wow Andrea, your version looks fabulous! You know how I love little tartlets. So glad that you enjoyed these -- we loved this recipe!

Anonymous said...

What interesting changes. You're tarts are just too cute!

Anonymous said...

Your substitutions/changes sound wonderful. I love goat cheese and your tarts look delicious.

Maria said...

The tarts look awesome!

Megan said...

Love the topping station - and I agree that these could be interchangeable for whatever filling strikes your mood.

Deb in Hawaii said...

Wow! I love all your changes--especially that gorgeous crust. They are beautiful--I think you outdid Ina!

Anonymous said...

Oh how I wish I had followed my instinct and used my tart pans! I'll have to give the pistachios a try. That sounds really interesting.

~Cat

Eva said...

That's an interesting change. I've never had a pistachio crust. I will have to try and make one sometime.

Peggy said...

Wow a pistachio crust! Very creative. We loved these. I'll definitely make them again. I had forgotten to make them until last night so I am a day late posting! Oh well. . .

Anonymous said...

The original recipe is fabulous, and your version looks fabulous, too! Very creative.

Jackie said...

Fabulous idea to make a pistachio crust! I used the puff pastry in mine, and although I liked that very much, I was trying to think of other ways to approach it too since I really liked the flavor profile.

Anonymous said...

love that crust idea. we loved these so much and i'd be open to changing it up a bit with your crust recipe since puff pastry doesn't really do it for me all the time.

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