Farm Fresh Goat Cheese & Leek Tart |
Snow Covered Leeks (© Rainer | Dreamstime.com)
When we saw that Manhattan’s Institute of Culinary Education was offering a cooking class called, “The Food Shed: Cooking Local and Seasonal” we just had to check it out. What could be better than learning a thing or two about cooking with fresh ingredients from local farms?
We weren’t disappointed. For starters, the class was presented by Chef-Instructor Melanie Underwood. She’s been an enthusiast for cooking with farm fresh ingredients since her days growing up on a farm in Virginia. Since leaving Virginia she’s demonstrated her culinary talent during stints at the Plaza Hotel and the Four Seasons Hotel. She’s been sharing her expertise with I.C.E.’s students since 1996, and offers private cooking classes as well.
The leek is a wonderful winter vegetable, often overlooked. It’s in the same family of vegetables as onions and garlic, but with a mild flavor. (It’s also one of the national emblems of Wales, where citizens wear it on St. David's Day.) Below is a terrific recipe for combining the flavor of leeks with goat cheese, shallots, and garlic taught to us by Chef Melanie. She had us using fresh ingredients from local farms and we highly recommend you do the same. One of her tips: if you buy nothing else at your farmers market, get some fresh garlic.
Ingredients for Tart Filling (One 9-Inch Tart)
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 2 Shallots, minced
• 2 Cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Large leaks, cleaned & white part only, finely chopped
• 1 (5-Ounce log goat cheese)
• 1 Cup heavy cream
• 2 Eggs
• Salt & pepper
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
1. Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan and add the shallots, cook until lightly golden. Add the garlic and leeks and cook until very soft, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
2. Meanwhile, mix together the goat cheese, heavy cream, eggs, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon black pepper.
3. Place the leek mixture on the dough and top with goat cheese mixture. Place in the oven and bake about 45 minutes or until the filling is set and the crust is golden.
Ingredients for Dough for 1 Tart
• 1¼ Cups all purpose flour
• ¼ Cup finely crumbled, cooked bacon
• ½ Teaspoon salt
• 1 Stick butter, cut into 8 pieces, or 4 ounces solidified bacon fat
• 2 to 3 Tablespoons ice water
Preparation of Dough
1. Combine the flour, bacon and salt in a bowl. Add in the butter and using a pastry blender, work in the butter to form small pea size pieces. Stir in 2 tablespoons ice water and mix until just combined. (Do not overwork the dough.) If the mixture appears dry, add in 1 more tablespoon of water. Flatten the dough into a disk and refrigerate about ½ hour.
2. Place the dough between 2 pieces of plastic wrap and roll out until 1/8-inch thick. Place the dough into a 9-inch tart shell. Chill the dough ½ hour.
We found this tart paired beautifully with a Sauvignon Blanc from Washington State's Columbia Valley.
To order a world class, hand-crafted olive oil from beautiful Mendocino, California go to: L'Autunno Blend Extra Virgin Olive Oil
If you’d like to purchase the Applewood Smoked Bacon so good it's won acclaim from the Chicago Tribune, the New York Times, Cuisine Magazine & Saveur Magazine go to: Thick Sliced Applewood Smoked Bacon
If you're near NYC & would like to see a great selection of cooking classes go to: Institute of Culinary Education
