Kale Mushroom and Goat Cheese Buckwheat Tart

 

I tend to be like a mad scientist in her laboratory mixing and concocting. There's an idea of different ingredients floating in my head and I begin writing it all down in my diary. It's a process that takes days, sometimes months, before I even begin to actually play around with the ingredients in the kitchen.

I keep going back to the diary, trying to decipher my own handwriting, thinking if this is the right flavor combination. Then I am in the grocery store and see another ingredient that might work, which makes me whip my diary out and look at my notes again and my train of thought begins moving in a totally different direction.

Once I think I have it - I take my other notebook - the neater one - and write down the ingredients neatly and clearly, then I work on the actual method. What comes first and what follows, roasting, sweating or sautéing - which form of cooking brings the best flavor out. There are many things to take into account, however I am not always rewarded with the perfect results, which often makes me go back to my untidy diary and scrutinize everything again.

But what to do with the object of experiment lying in my kitchen? Obviously I will try to disguise it as dinner or dessert, if it tastes good, my two recipe testers are never the wiser. Other times I have no choice but to bin the tasteless mush because I know no matter how hard I try to disguise it nothing is going to make this thing go down too well. Then there are times that an experiment gone wrong takes me into a whole new route and experiment all over again. An experiment of and experiment if you will.

Like this recipe. It actually started out to be dinner rolls, but along the way I knew it was not going to work. Throwing it away was not an option as I had used organic products and hate wasting food. I thought of flat bread and as I was rolling it another idea popped into my head. I went to my diary (the untidy one) and flicked the pages. Yes why not.

A yeasted tart dough - maybe not a novel idea - but something about how the recipe for the dough came together was showing me it would be perfect for a tart crust. It’s rich and extremely easy to handle.

I just needed to find a perfect filling for it. Buckwheat is gorgeous, nutty and intense and so the filling had to complement it - balance the taste but not drown it out. I begin caramelizing onions as the sweetness would balance that strong earthy taste. Complementing the earthy taste of buckwheat are mushrooms, also caramelized gently for a perfect sweetness but still withholding the earthiness. Finally, I combined it with kale - gorgeous and one of my favorite leafy greens. Although kale imparts a strong flavor I wanted it's bitterness to contrast against the sweeter flavors of the caramelized vegetables.

Finally fresh and aromatic herbs like rosemary, thyme and bay leaf wraps up the entire tart making it go from ordinary to sensational. A sprinkling of goat cheese takes the tart to the next level with its creamy texture it binds all the aromas brilliantly. 

Kale Mushroom and Goat Cheese Buckwheat Tart

Printable version of recipe here

Ingredients

For the Buckwheat Yeasted Tart Dough

115g + 60g cup all-purpose flour
115g buckwheat flour
1 teaspoon dry yeast
60 ml warm water
pinch of salt
1 egg, at room temperature
3 tablespoons soft butter

For the filling

2-3 teaspoons butter
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
600g fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 large bunch kale, chopped, steamed and water drained
2 tablespoons fresh herbs of choice
230 ml vegetable stock
handful of parmesan cheese, grated
180g goat cheese
Salt, pepper and crushed pink peppercorns

Method

For the Buckwheat Yeasted Tart Dough

1. In a small bowl dissolve yeast and sugar in the warm water. Allow to rest for approx. 10 minutes.
   
   
2. Mix together salt buckwheat flour and 115g all-purpose flour in a large bowl. Push some flour from the middle of the bowl to the sides to make a well. Pour in the egg.
   
   
3. Add the butter and pour the yeast-sugar liquid, then using a wooden spoon stir the ingredients in the well. Then slowly begin picking up some of the flour from the sides. Continue stirring, picking up more and more flour as you stir. In the end you should have a smooth dough, which will easily pull away from the bowl.
   
   
4. Transfer the dough to onto a clean countertop and begin kneading with your hands. Add the remaining all-purpose flour. Continue to knead until all the flour is incorporated. Knead for another 5-8 minutes until it is smooth and shiny. Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth and allow to rise for approx. 1 hour. The dough should have doubled. Punch it down.
   
   
5. The dough is wonderfully elastic and easy to work with so there should be no trouble rolling it out. As a matter of fact I simply used my fingers to spread it out and then pressed it into my buttered tart form. You can also use a rolling pin and roll it to the size of your form.
   

For the filling

1. Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees C.
   
   
2. Heat a large pan and allow the butter to melt. Add sliced onions and sauté until translucent. Add mushrooms, herbs and salt and caramelize the vegetables on a low heat for 15-20 minutes. The mushrooms will release their juices then add the stock and reduce until the mushrooms are brown and caramelized. Remove from heat.
   
   
3. Sprinkle grated parmesan on the base of your crust to keep the base crisp.
   
   
4. Add the chopped steamed kale to the mushroom and mix to incorporate. Toss in half of the goat cheese. Season to taste.
   
5. Transfer mixture to the tart form and top with remaining goat cheese.
   
   
6. Bake tart for 30-45 minutes until the crust is brown and filling is hot and bubbling.
   
   
7. Serve sprinkled with crushed pink peppercorns, a fresh tomato salad and a glass of chilled white wine.

 

 

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Verdict

 

If all experiments gone wrong would end up with such incredibly delicious results I’d probably not curse as much in the kitchen. But this recipe has gone down into my neat diary – the one I save for all my experiments gone right. The rich almost brioche like dough gives so much flavor to the entire tart and the caramelized vegetables add a wonderful harmony to the nutty flavors of the dough.

I was recently interviewed by the Food & Drink edition of Bizymoms. If you fancy you can read my interview on the Love of Food on their website. Have fun!

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You might like these tarts from WFLH:

Wonderfully Caramelized Vegetable Tart	Tomato Olive Tart	Tarte Flambée with Tomatoes and Creamy Spinach

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