Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Three star dish!

   I know it looks like it's tart season in the Morgan house, but it's such a summery dish to me that I wouldn't have it any other way. There is so many delicious vegetables and herbs around nowadays and they are perfect in a tart. You can get as creative as you want, mix and match ingredients, try new unexplored things, and you are almost always guaranteed to get a delicious dish (almost always!). The basic dough recipe is always the same, but I try to keep it exciting and add different herbs each time to make it unique. The most important thing is to make sure it's super crunchy, so you can get a nice contrast with a creamy filling. Here is one of the ideas for a delicious, summer-like leeks and turkey bacon tart:

Crust:
*  1 1/2cup all-purpose flour
*  1 tsp salt
*  1 tsp sugar
*  1 stick cold butter
*  1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
*  2-3 tsp ice water

Filling:
*  10 slices turkey bacon (chopped)
*  3 large leeks (sliced)
*  1 large onion
*  1 tbsp butter
*  1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
*  2 tbsp chopped fresh mint
*  1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
*  salt and pepper

1. In a food processor combine the flour, salt, sugar, and basil. Pulse to combine.
2. Add the butter and pulse until the butter is finely chopped and the mixture resembles a coarse meal. Add the ice water and run the machine just until the mixture is moist and crumbly, but does not form a ball. Do not over mix. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
3. In a meantime, crisp the bacon and set aside on the paper towel.
4. In the same pan melt butter add leeks, onions, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper and cook everything for 10 minutes until soft. Add fresh mint, cheese and crisped bacon.
5. Roll the refrigerated crust and transfer into greased pie baking dish. Cover the crust with the leek mixture and bake at 350F for 45 minutes.
6. If you have any remaining crust dough you can go crazy and decorate the top of the tart, like I did.




   Isn't it cute? Perfect for the 4th of July. Not only good looking, but also yummy and nutritious. The crust is crunchy and fragrant (thanks to basil) and the filling is creamy and cheesy.




   Who wouldn't like a mixture of onions and bacon? Well, if you are vegetarian or don't like leeks I guess you wouldn't like it, but cheese? I'm sure everybody loves cheese! Try it, I'm sure you will enjoy it.

Good luck.
Magda

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