Some of my fans wanted me to publish a tart recipe, so I felt obliged with this simple appetizer, as a start. This small tartlets, filled with mushrooms, are ideal to serve warm with any kind of drinks. As an alternative, they could be made larger tarts and served as a first course. In this recipe, you first have to make the shortcrust pastry. I know it is better to see how it is actually done, but after a couple of tries with my easy to follow methods, you will find that it is really easy to make. Once you master making the pastry, the possibilities of creating any kind of pastries/tarts or quiche are endless.
Ingredients:
olive oil for cooking
1 small onion, chopped
3 cups coarsely chopped mushroom
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh parsley
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 egg yolk
1 cup light cream
salt and pepper
Ingredients for the <R>pastry:
2 cups flour
pinch salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, diced (Smart
Balance buttery spread can be substituted)
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese (optional)
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons water
Methods:
1. To make the filling, heat 2
tablespoons olive oil, and add the onions. Cook until wilted before adding
the mushrooms. Saut? the mushrooms until brown, then stir in the celery
and parsley. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. To make the short crust pastry,
sift the flour, salt and sugar into a bowl. Add the butter, then rub with
both hands until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs. Stir in the parmesan
cheese, then bind the pastry with the egg and water to make a firm dough.
Wrap the pastry dough in a plastic wrap and chill for 45 minutes.
3. Preheat the oven to 325º F.
Grease three 12-hole mini muffin tins. On a light floured surface,
roll out the pastry to a thickness of 1/8” and refrigerate for 5 minutes.
Use a 2 3/4” plain round cutter to cut out 30 rounds from the pastry.
Press the rounds into the muffin tins, pressing along the bottoms so the
dough extends a little bit above the edge of the tins. Refrigerate
the lined tins for about 10 minutes. Lightly prick the base of the pastry
with a fork and bake blind for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the pastry colors
slightly (see Chef’s Tips). Remove the beans and paper and bake the pastry for 2-3 minutes
more or until golden brown. Leave the tartlets for 5 minutes to cool.
Increase the oven temperature to 375º F.
4. Whisk the egg, egg yolk and
cream, and season with salt and pepper. Fill each tartlet tin with 1/2 to
1 teaspoon of the filling, then carefully pour in the cream mixture. Bake
for 5-8 minutes, or until the filling is set and firm. Remove the
tartlets from the tins while still warm. If they stick, loosen the
tartlets carefully with the tip of a small knife. Serve warm.
Chef’s tips:
Baking blind is baking the pastry crust
before it is filled. To keep the shape of the pastry crust, the shell is
pricked with a fork and lined with parchment or foil and baking beans or rice.
Pricking the pastry allows the steam to escape during baking.
Always bake according to the time specified in the recipe, or until firm,
at which point you must remove the beans/rice and paper.
Editor’s note: Mrs. Evelyn S. Bunoan is
Owner/Master Chef, Philippine Oriental Market & Deli (with more than 28
years of service to the Filipino-American community) - 3610 Lee
Highway, Arlington, Virginia; (703)528-0300; Master Chef (French
cuisine), Le Cordon Bleu, London, UK; recipe creator, improviser, food
stylist, cake designer, and culinary writer; kitchen-tested and mastered
more than 300 recipes, and counting. Host of the cooking show –Evelyn’s
Kitchen – Cooking with Friends”.
