Thursday, April 26, 2012

Tomato & Goat Cheese Tarts

I bought Ina Garten's Back to the Basics last year while in Vancouver.  I remember that during this trip, Marlina and I talked about starting a blog.  I was so excited at the idea so I splurged and bought 4 cookbooks at Chapters, spending a ridiculous amount of money.  To this day, I haven't regretted those purchases.  I'm slowly working my way through Ina's books and love how simple (for the most part!) and delicious the recipes are.  I bookmarked this recipe several times and was surprised that I never made it sooner.  Now I can say that I have, and will be making it more in the future.

I love goat cheese and caramelized onions.  They are the 'tops' in my books!  The whole tart works so well together, it's no surprise that they’re gone so quickly and I need to make more ASAP.  I thought that they worked well as an appetizer or even a light meal with a green salad.  I tried a bri, apple and pecan combination as well but preferred the taste of the tomato goat cheese over-you can’t go wrong with this combination.  The thyme (my favorite herb by the way!) gives it a nice rounded taste.  In the future, I will remember to buy more puff pastry so I will have lots leftover!

Tomato & Goat Cheese Tarts
Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

1 package (17.3 ounces/2 sheets) puff pastry, defrosted in the refrigerator overnight

3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for brushing

4 cups thinly sliced yellow onion, approximately 2 large onions

3 large garlic cloves, cut into thin slivers

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons white wine

2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves

4 tablespoons freshly grated parmesan cheese, plus 2 ounces shaved

4 ounces herb and garlic goat cheese (plain is fine as well)

1 large tomatoes, cut into 4 1/4 inch thick slices

3 tablespoons julienned basil leaves

DIRECTIONS

On a lightly floured surface,  unfold the sheet of puff pastry on and roll into at 11 X 11-inch square. Using a 6 inch wide saucer, cut two circles from the sheet of puff pastry, discard scraps. Repeat with the second sheet and place the circles on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. 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 fork.  Refrigerate until ready to use.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

In a large skillet, heat the 3 tablespoons oil over medium-low heat. Add the onions and garlic and sauté for about 15-20 minutes, or until the onions are limp and there is hardly any moisture in the skillet.

Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/3 teaspoon pepper, white wine, thyme and continue to cook for another 10 minutes, until the onions are lightly browned. Remove from heat.

Take the sheet out of the refrigerator.  Sprinkle a tablespoon of parmesan in each round, staying inside the scored border.

Place one-quarter of the onion mixture on each circle, again staying inside the scored edge. Crumble one ounce of goat cheese on top of the onions. place a slice of the tomato in the cenrte of each tart. brush the tomato lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with basil, salt and pepper. Scatter shaved parmesan on each tart.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown. Serve hot or warm.

Source: slightly adapted from Ina Garten’s Back to the Basics