Onion and Gruyère Tart
Serves: 6
Preparation time: 45 min.
Tarte à l'Oignon et au Gruyère is a popular recipe all over France. It is a melt-in-the-mouth dish: light, delicious and with character. If you don't find Gruyère cheese in your part of the world, you can use mature Swiss cheese, albeit it is not a full substitute.
A perfect dish for a light lunch or appetizer.
Ingredients:
- 300 gr (10 oz) ready made puff pastry, defrosted
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 4 medium onions, peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbps Caster sugar
- freshly ground pepper
- 115 gr (4 oz) grated Gruyère cheese (substitute: mature Swiss cheese)
- 1 teasp Dijon mustard
- 12 anchovy fillets, in olive oil, rinsed and patted dry
- 12 black olives
- 1 tbsp fresh oregano leaves, chopped
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 200° C (400° F).
Place a skillet over medium heat and add the 2 tbsp. olive oil. Add onions and sauté them until they are golden, about 10-15 minutes. Add balsamic vinegar and sugar. Cook for further 2 minutes. Add a few turns of freshly ground pepper. The addition of salt might be unnecessary do to the salt content of anchovies, olives and cheese. Remove from heat and set aside.
Line a 26 cm (10 inch) quiche pan with removable bottom (fluted pie pan) with parchment paper. Don't line the sides, just the bottom ! Roll out the puff pastry and fit it into the quiche pan. Leftover hanging pastry should be clipped from the sides of the pan carefully. Failure to do so, will result in a difficult time when removing the tart from the pan. Prickle pie bottom with a fork a couple of times. This will avoid puff pastry making bubbles.
Take a kitchen brush and brush pie bottom sparingly, with the 1 teasp. Dijon mustard. Top pastry with the Gruyère cheese and caramelized onions. Make a nice design on top with the anchovies and black olives. Sprinkle with the chopped oregano leaves.
Bake on the middle shelf until golden for 25-30 minutes. Let it cool for about 10 minutes and carefully remove the side of the quiche pan. Serve on its own or with salad greens.
