This tart is one of my seasonal favourites. Using seasonal, local and sustainable mushrooms, along with locally grown kale this is the epitome of a flexitarian diet. This tart is so good you don’t event realise there is no meat, nor do you want for it. The meaty umami flavour of the mushrooms works so well with the slight astringent bitterness of the kale and this is all balanced and rounded with the creamy filling and nutty notes from the vintage gruyere. You can make your own pastry, using spelt or a little wholemeal flour adds another layer of flavour, or another great alternative is ready to roll puff pastry. If you are not cooking for vegans or people with cholesterol issues go the All Butter puff pastry, alternatively the regular one works great. I prefer the chill to frozen if you can get it.
Make two of these…. pop one, fully baked, in the freezer and enjoy a stunning easy supper another night.
I hope you love this as much as I do and yes, those thoughts of leftovers the next day, are going to be just as good as you imagined.
Ingredients
Pastry
- 250 g plain flour or 125g plain & 125g wholemeal
- 125 g butter
- 1 egg
- Ice cold water if needed
- 30 g grated parmesan
- 5 g black pepper
- 5 g thyme
Filling
- 2 tbsp oil
- 2 tbsp butter cold cut into small cubes
- 1 onion
- 400 g mushrooms 6 cremini, 6 white/button, 150g ceps, 150g girolles - as a guide - any combination is fine
- 125 g kale
- 5 g thyme
- 5 g parsley
- Sea salt and black pepper
- 4 medium / 3 large eggs
- 250 mls cream
- 150 g vintage gouda
Instructions
- Pastry: Sieve the flour into a bowl. Cut the butter into small cubes. Rub the butter into the flour until it looks like breadcrumbs. Add in the grated Parmesan, black pepper and thyme. Crack the egg in a separate cup. Whisk. Create a well ( hollow ) in the centre of the flour and stir in the egg using a metal knife or fork. Add a few drops of ice cold water if needed and combine until it forms a soft dough. Wrap in parchment paper and allow to chill in the fridge for a minimum of 30 minutes. This will stop your pastry shrinking and your tart filling spilling out later.
- Filling: Wipe the mushrooms, slice the larger ones if needed. Peel and dice the onion. Heat half the oil and butter in the pan until it foams a little, pop in the sprigs of thyme and sauce the onions low and slow for 20 minutes until golden.
- Pastry: Preheat the oven to 170?. Remove the pastry from the fridge. Roll out the pastry, sit into to pie dish, prick the bottom with a fork, line with parchment and baking beans and bake for 20 minutes until lightly golden. Remove the baking beans and parchment.
- Filling: In a separate pan, Heat half the oil and butter in the pan until it foams a little, pop in the mushrooms, turn up the heat to high, add the sea salt and cook the mushrooms, tossing occasionally until they are golden brown and cooked. Remove, set aside and then wilt down the kale until tender. As the onion and mushrooms cook, grate the cheese, crack the eggs and whisk lightly. Pour in the cream, season with sea salt and black pepper. Stir in the grated cheese.
- Tart: spread a thin layer (about one quarter) of mushrooms on the tart. Pour in the filling, dot in the kale, sprinkle with parmesan, pile the remaining mushrooms on top.
- Bake for 30 - 40 minutes (until no longer runny in the centre). Allow to cool for a few moments and serve with a bright green salad.
