We’ve Gone all Tarty – Potato & Balsamic Onion Wholemeal Tart, Caramel Apple Olive Oil Pastry Galette
Feeling a little tarty the other weekend I went to the pantry for inspiration….. and not what you may have been thinking that I was wearing some inappropriate attire for my age! In fact I have gone quite conservative lately with 60s vintage dresses that I am having so much fun buying, I just wish I could find the shoes to match. The back combed hair will not be making an appearance though, I only managed to grow it a couple of inches long before I went screaming to the hairdresser for a short crop again! Longer hair is so impractical if you want a quick surf before work and still turn up to the office looking half decent and on time.
The plan was to make a savoury and sweet tart out of the same pastry base but as I started on my tart mission I realized I did not have enough butter for two tarts but I was still determined to make two as remembered a recipe I had seen on one of my favourite food blogs by Natalie at Food Blog and the Dog. This is a ‘must go to site’ if you are vegetarian or need some non meat inspiration in your cooking. I often wish I could accompany Natalie on her walks through the Andalusian countryside.
I wasn’t sure if I was going to like the pastry for the sweet tart, after all I’m a die hard trained French pastry chef but I love this pastry so much I am going to make some of my Christmas baking with it this year. If you like a nice crisp crust you will love it too.
Potato & Balsamic Onion Tart with Wholemeal Rosemary Pastry
Pastry ingredients & method you can find HERE
Add a handful of fresh rosemary to the flour before whizzing into breadcrumbs
Ingredients – Filling
3 red onions, peeled & finely sliced
Olive oil
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp brown sugar
1 large potato (200g), peeled & thinly sliced
100g feta cheese
1 free range egg
100ml milk
pinch of salt & ground black pepper
Method – Filling
Pre-heat oven to 180C and grease & flour a loose bottom tart tin.
In a large frying pan over a medium heat add a splash of olive oil and the sliced onions.
Braise onions until they are soft, approximately 8 minutes then add the balsamic vinegar & brown sugar and stir through onions.
Cook for a further 2 minutes and allow onions to cool before spreading them over the tart case.
Crumble the feta cheese over the onions then arrange the sliced potatoes over the top as in the picture.
Whisk together the egg and milk with the salt & pepper and gently pour over the potatoes.
Bake for 35 minutes or until the egg has set and the potatoes are golden.
Serve with salad.
Caramel Apple Tart with Spelt & Olive Oil Pastry
Ingredients
75g Spelt flour or wholemeal
75g plain flour or wholemeal
1 Tbsp brown sugar
60g olive oil
1 egg
1/4 cup cold water (approximately)
Method – Pastry
Place both flours into a food processor with the sugar.
Add the olive oil to the flour while whizzing the food processor until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
Add the egg and whiz again briefly.
Remove the lid & blade from the processor and continue the next step by hand to prevent the pastry going tough.
Add the water gradually while kneading the dough lightly with one hand, add only enough water to bring the dough together. Once the dough comes together do not knead it any longer.
You can rest the pastry for 10 minutes if it is warm but I find with wholemeal & buckwheat the pastry is manageable straight away.
Roll pastry out to the size of a large dinner plate and move to a non stick baking sheets.
Ingredients – Filling
3 apples, cored and slice thinly
2 Tbsp castor sugar
2 Tbsp water
2 Tbsp butter
Method – Filling
Pre-heat oven to 180C.
Arrange apple slices around the pastry base leaving an inch bare around the edge to fold over.
Fold dough into the centre to cover the edge of the apples, pleating as you go, it doesn’t have to be perfect, galettes are rustic.
Place water, butter & sugar for the caramel in a pan on a low heat until the sugar has dissolved then turn up the heat. Once it starts to turn golden brown, turn off the heat and allow it to cool.
Once cool pour carefully over the apples in the pastry case.
Bake for 35 minutes on a low shelf in the oven to crisp the bottom.
Excellent – I love tartness 🙂
So beautiful!
Wow! You have exactly the same knives and forks we have. Great looking tarts too. I like making them because they always look so good and photograph well. I must check out that blog. By the way, I think the beginning part of your post is missing unless I am blind.
Aren’t they gorgeous the old cutlery sets, my mum brought them from the UK on her last trip but I know there are plenty around in NZ too. Thanks for pointing out the missing words, I had cropped a bit, full marks for attention to detail ;0)
I love tarts too, they look great, and thank you for telling us about the Food Blog and the Dog, I am curious now and I’ll go and have a look.
Ciao
Alessandra
i enjoy making (and eating) pastry too – it really is so easy – so thanks for some new ideas and recipes. the apple galette looks divine. and thank you for the link to another blog, i shall be checking it you!
A fabulous tart and gorgeous galette! Both look mouthwatering. I’ll have a slice of both, please… ;-P
Cheers,
Rosa
Yum, I like the sound of the olive oil and spelt flour tart. Enjoy !
I am totally tarty at the moment too! I love your potato version, I usually use courgette but will definitely going spud next time, comfort food bliss! It’s so funny I have just made and photographed an apple galette too, mine has a vanilla apple puree base under the apples though, it’s one of the recipes I shared at my last healthy baking workshop. I wish I could “pop” over to one of your workshops to see how it’s done, I am kind of winging it, especially as it is in Spanish! Any tips? x
I always believe having fun and letting everyone have a go at workshop is the best key to success. I am sure you are brilliant running your classes, I admire you doing it another language, I dont think I would find it as easy in my second language German. I have a Hens party class for 12 this Sat, they are always such fun!
Oh and thanks for sending all the new people too!
Really clever recipes! I am now inspired for the weekend.
Thanks for sharing!
Loving your tarts! I’ll definitely be doing the savoury one as we have a vegetarian in the household a lot these days. Like the tip of adding fresh rosemary into the flour – I can smell it right now.
Well I love a little tart 🙂 Both these pastry’s sound amazing & especially loving the potato & balsamic tart. Making me hungry…..
Your apple tart pastry looks so crunchy! love it
Love that first photo – the golden specks on top of that are perfection!
Both are lovely but I am craving the potato one right now!
I love the both of these!