As spring begins to stretch its fledgling wings, I get itchy to spend time outdoors. It’s a bit maddening having to be patient with all the persistent brown on the landscape, but with some recent invigorating sunshine and breezes passing through (too soon, really, but it’s been 60º the past couple days), I have begun dreaming of warmer days and my gardens again.
Seated next to the nightly fire a week ago I realized there are a few plants I’d like to fill out more in my perennial beds. Ohio Spiderwort and Cream False Indigo spoke to me. I investigated esoteric herbs and some new vegetables… If you’ll be a visitor to our cottage this year, check in with me mid-summer to see my progress at growing sculpit (both as a culinary herb and for the cottage floral arrangements!) - and a new tomato named Vernazza. I am charting a course to invigorate lots of delicious things, trying to “get ready” (whatever that means) to receive the rest of the year with grace.
One happy return to my landscape is the plucky, tender tufts of wild-growing field garlic. Use them just like chives or conventional garlic, and definitely make this recipe. I use the dressing on so many things: Of course to dress juicy salad greens, but also as a schmear on toast topped with a fried or custardy egg, dolloped onto the pot of beans-of-the-moment, or tossed through pasta or rice. You could certainly slather it onto a beautiful seared piece of chicken or fish, and you would eat royally for it!
In the meantime, as next week’s temps look to plummet again, make this easy, delicious dish from my book.
You can use any mushrooms if you make it. While writing the book, I’d scored fresh porcini mushrooms on a neighborhood bike ride and used them for this wild mushroom-potato-onion tart. Their savoriness was divine. Portobellos would work in a cinch with their ample size and meaty character.
One of the great benefits of this recipe is, it incorporates hardy veg like onions and potatoes and presents them to us in a new, maybe even sexy, way. Though I usually make things from scratch, I have only ever bought puff pastry. It serves me well whenever I need to make a dish without much notice, or something that feels special, even when using basic ingredients. Enter this fantastic tart. You can eat it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. You may eat it room temp or hot. With an egg on top if you want to get extra… ;)
Wild mushroom-potato-onion tart
3 oz Gruyère, grated
12 oz fresh wild mushrooms, any or a mix of: hen of the woods, oyster mushrooms, king bolete, chanterelles, or conventional mushrooms such as portobellos or cremini, any dirt or debris brushed off
1 package prepared puff pastry, such as Dufour, thawed in the refrigerator
4 medium Yukon gold potatoes, sliced 1/8-inch thick on a mandoline
½ batch caramelized onions (see below)
5-9 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves stripped from stems
3 stems fresh tarragon, leaves stripped from stems, reserved in refrigerator
Buttermilk, to paint
Flour, for dusting
Kosher salt + freshly cracked pepper
Caramelized onions
3 medium yellow onions, peeled and thinly sliced
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus more as needed
kosher salt, to taste
To make the caramelized onions, get a large cast iron skillet hot over medium-high heat and add a generous drizzle of oil. Add the onions, toss to thoroughly coat in oil, and season with salt. Sauté until the onions begin to soften, 7-10 minutes. Stir at intervals, lowering the heat to medium if they begin to burn. Lower heat to medium-low and continue to sauté, adding another drizzle of oil if the pan feels dry.
Stir occasionally as they soften further and begin to caramelize, spreading them out in an even layer as they cook. Stir the mixture, turning the slices, then spread in an even layer again. Repeat like this until the onions are deeply golden, translucent, and collapsed, 30-40 minutes. They will have cooked down dramatically once they are done. Set aside to cool. This can be made up to a week in advance and stored in a sealed jar in the refrigerator. Any leftovers will keep up to 3 weeks.
Assemble the tart: Unfold pastry onto a lightly floured sheet of parchment and roll to a rough rectangle. With a sharp paring knife, hold the knife-edge perpendicular and score a border 1 inch in from the edge, all the way around. Transfer to a baking sheet and chill in the refrigerator.
Slice or tear the mushrooms into 1/4-inch pieces. In a large cast iron skillet, cook mushrooms with a drizzle of oil and a pinch of salt until they begin to collapse and brown, about 5-7 minutes, turning occasionally. Remove the pan from heat and set aside.
Preheat oven to 400º. Bring the pastry out from the fridge. Paint buttermilk onto the border. Sprinkle the cheese in an even layer onto the pastry, inside the border. Arrange the potato slices like shingles, followed by the caramelized onions, scattered around. Sprinkle half the thyme leaves, then add the mushrooms, followed by the remaining thyme leaves. Season with pepper and drizzle a very small amount of olive oil, just enough to kiss the surface in places.
Bake tart on the sheet pan for 30 minutes or until pastry is golden and cheese is melted, rotating pan after 20 minutes for even baking. Set tart on a wire rack and cool for 5 minutes.
Cut it into slices, sprinkle fresh tarragon leaves to garnish, and enjoy. Store any leftovers between layers of parchment, sealed in a container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat slices in a toaster oven for best results.
Note: Scoring a border helps puff up the crust as the butter within the layers melts, producing steam to expand the layers in the roaring hot oven.
Food like this helps us get across the winter finish line. Tell me in the comments… what are your tricks for escaping winter’s last clutches?