“I think that this is the best thing I've ever eaten!”
I think that this is the best thing that someone's ever said about my cooking. I have called this Regan’s tart because this is what he said when he tried it a few years ago in the South of France.
Usually such a compliment would have had me gushing with pride, but I had to show some restraint. Regan is my cousin Kirsty’s best friend. Kirsty loves cooking to and is very good at it. He said it in front of her. He was in the doghouse.
It has been much talked about since – both Kirsty reminding Regan of his thoughtlessness and Regan angling for a repeat. In this context it was with great trepidation that I offered to make it again this weekend, not just for Regan, but for Kirsty too. Eek!
“I doubt it will be as good after all the build up” I said to Kirsty when we were discussing menu plans.
“My care factor about it not being as good is minimal!”
Fair play.
It’s actually a really easy recipe, but I've had difficulty writing it down because it's so ad hoc. It doesn't really require any measurements, it’s all to taste and quantities vary depending on the size of pan. I know some people freak out if a recipe doesn’t have measurements so I've provided some, but please bear this in mind and feel free to play around. Only the pastry needs to be made according to the recipe, and you can substitute this for packet pastry in any case.
It's traditional to use a cast iron frying pan when making tarte tatins, but I don’t own one so I used a 12 inch pizza tray for this recipe. It can be made in any size pan you fancy. If you are worried about adjusting the recipe accordingly, the leftovers would make a lovely salad. It also works as little individual tarts, though this is more fiddly.
Ingredients
3 large beetroots (approx. 275g when trimmed and peeled), peeled and cut into eighths
5 tbsp butter
½ cup water
Small bunch thyme
Salt and pepper, to taste
4 x eschallion shallots (approx. 225g), peeled and cut lengthways into eighths
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar, or to taste
4 tbsp muscavado sugar
1 x portion rough puff pastry (or 1 sheet packet puff pastry)
1 round (125g) soft, rindless goat’s cheese
Method
Preheat the oven to 180°C.
Put the pieces of beetroot in a saucepan with 1 tablespoon of butter, water and a few sprigs of the thyme and season with salt and pepper. Cover and put over a low heat for approximately 15 minutes or until the beetroot pieces are cooked (but not too soft). Add more water if it all evaporates.
Meanwhile, melt 3 tbsp of butter in a 12 inch cast iron frying pan over a low heat. Add the shallots and fry for 2 minutes, stirring a little. Add the balsamic vinegar and sugar and fry for a further 10 minutes until they are very soft, stirring frequently.
Add a tablespoon of the thyme, finely chopped. Season with salt and pepper, taste and add more vinegar, sugar, salt or pepper as you see fit. The shallots should be coated in a sticky sweet and savoury sauce. When you are happy with them, pour them into a bowl and put to one side.
Add the rest of the butter to the pan, melt it and swirl it around so it coats it. Take it off the heat and arrange the beetroots in the pan. Put the shallots on top of the beetroot.
Roll out the pastry and place it over the top and tuck in the edges. If there is a lot of excess pastry trim it, but you need to leave a bit extra, as it will shrink in the oven.
Cook for 15-20 minutes, or until the pastry has risen and is golden brown on top. When it has cooled a little, put a plate over the pan, turn it upside down and remove the pan. Some of the beetroot pieces may stick to the pan – you can just pop them back in their place.
Finally, slice the goat’s cheese into rounds and arrange them on top of the tart. Best served warm.
