Chef Greg Christian: Street-Smart Sustainability

Chef Greg Christian: Street-Smart Sustainability

Versatile Veggie Tart

As an infant bride, I arrived in my tiny apartment kitchen with an arsenal of food knowledge acquired from generations of country cooks, ready to impress my new husband.  In the big city, I soon learned that my repertoire was limited to a few methods: bread it, fry it, boil it or if all else fails, cover it with gravy.  I did have a secret weapon given to me as a wedding gift that I looked to for inspiration, the local women’s cookbook given as a wedding gift, which was filled with casserole recipes based on Campbell’s cream soups and Cool Whip. Yes, I am poking a little fun at myself and presenting a very limited view of the fine cooking traditions of my hometown.  Like most people, the food I was raised eating is what I crave when I need love & comfort.  Well, that and cake… and chocolate… covered in gravy.  But I digress.

I’ve always loved cooking with fresh, seasonal vegetables, but began seriously re-thinking the health implications of good ‘ole southern cuisine as I began my lifelong study of nutrition and all things related to food.  I was fortunate to grow up in a family that prepared and preserved a variety of fresh vegetables and fruits we grew ourselves.  As a young adult in Virginia Beach, I was delighted by the offerings at the Farmer’s Market and my favorite weekend activity was to spend the early afternoon scouting out the best produce and then heading home to cook Sunday dinner.  I wanted experiment with the preparation of these lovely treasures and so I ordered my first cookbook from one of the book clubs so popular at that time… Betty Crocker’s 40^th Anniversary Edition Cookbook.  Go ahead and giggle; Betty might not be terribly sophisticated, but she was a revelation for me! 

Leek & Mushroom Tart

The recipe I’m sharing today is adapted from that very cookbook, the pages stained and slipping from the broken binding.  (Let’s say that I’m far from the days when it was purchased).  As I promised in my last entry, I am going to give you a base recipe that you can alter based on whatever vegetables are in season and your own personal tastes.  Base recipes are perfect for everyday cooking because with a little know-how you’ve got the foundation for a variety of meals.  The base recipe and suggested variations and accompaniments are below to get you started.  Have fun with it and try bold new combinations.  Please note the picture is not mine because my tart was gobbled right up by my mother, sisters and me at brunch.  Serve with a fresh fruit or green salad & crunchy sesame breadsticks.  Enjoy!

Leeks- use only white parts!

Leek & Mushroom Tart

Adapted from Betty Crocker’s 40^th Anniversary Edition Cookbook, 1991

Ingredients:

Tart & Pie Dough (see below)

3 TB butter, olive oil or combination

2 cups sliced leeks (white parts only- about ½ pound)

1 cup coarsely-chopped shitake or other fresh mushrooms (about 3 oz.)

1 cup shredded white cheddar or cheddar cheese (4 oz.)

¾ cup shredded mozzarella cheese (3 oz.)

3 eggs

2/3 cup milk

½ TS salt

Shitake mushrooms

¼ TS ground nutmeg

Sprinkle of white pepper

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375°F.  Prepare pastry and ease into 9” tart pan or pie plate.  Bake as directed, cool.

Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.  Heat butter in a skillet over medium heat.  Add the leeks and mushrooms and cook about five minutes or until softened.  Spread in tart pan.  Sprinkle with cheeses.  Beat remaining ingredients and pour over cheeses.  Bake about 35 minutes or until set.  6 servings

Variations:

Vegetables	Cheese	Flavorings (Use total of 1 TB fresh herb or ½ TS dried herb or spice)	Easy Serving Suggestions
Summer- thinly-sliced zucchini & fresh tomato (do not pre-cook tomato)	Mozzarella and/ or Parmesan	Basil and/ or Marjoram	Caesar salad & focaccia bread
Summer/ Autumn- eggplant & fresh tomato- can be brushed with olive oil & roasted for a deeper flavor (instead of sautéing).	Crumbled Feta	Basil and/ or Greek Oregano	Selection of good-quality olives & sautéed chard or spinach & garlic in olive oil
Summer/Autumn- caramelized onion & mushroom (sauté onions over medium heat until softened then lower heat, add white wine or sherry, mushrooms & stir until onions are very deep brown)	Gruyère or fresh goat cheese	Rosemary or Thyme (Rosemary is a strong herb so reduce amounts above by half.)	Green salad w/ light vinaigrette and country bread drizzled with olive oil
Spring- asparagus & leek (blanch the asparagus in boiling water for about 2-3 minutes before sautéing).	Fontina	Fresh Parsley or Fresh/ Dried Tarragon	Steamed & buttered tiny green peas and simple mixed greens salad.
Winter- butternut squash & onion (cube squash into very small pieces- ¼ inch)	Gruyère or Fontina	Sage or Rosemary	Baguette with butter & sautéed kale, garlic & olive oil

Wonderful recipes & helpful techniques

Tart and Pie Dough

Adapted from The Art of Simple Food.  Waters, Alice.  2007

Note: Recipe below is for one tart or pie crust.  The recipe can be doubled or quadrupled to make 2-4 pie crusts, which can be frozen for quick use on busy days.  I try to make 2-4 pie crusts at a time for the convenience of “ready-made” pie crusts.

Ingredients:

¼ cup ice-cold water

1 cup all-purpose unbleached flour or whole-wheat pastry flour

¼ TS salt (omit if using salted butter)

6 TB cold butter, cut into ¼-inch cubes

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 375°.  Line the tart pan or pie plate with parchment paper to prevent sticking.

Mix together the flour and salt (if using) in a medium bowl.   Cut the butter into the flour with a pastry blender or work into flour with your fingertips, leaving some of the butter in fairly large, irregular pieces.  (Or mix no more than 1 minute at medium-low speed in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.)  Pour in three-quarters of the water, stirring all the while with a fork until the dough begins to form clumps.  (In the mixer, turn the speed to low and port the water down the sides of the bowl, mixing for 30 seconds or less.)  Keep adding water if needed.  Form the dough into a ball and wrap in plastic.  Compress the ball and flatten into disks.  Let rest in refrigerator for 1 hour or longer.

Remove the dough from refrigerator and let soften for about 10 minutes if it has been refrigerated for more than a couple of hours.  While still in plastic, flatten the dough you’re your hands, pinching the edges to seal any cracks that may appear. Lightly and evenly dust a counter with flour and place the unwrapped dough in the middle.  Generously dust the top of the dough with flour.  With the rolling pin, tap firmly across the top of the dough a few times to flatten the disk even more, then begin to roll out from the center, being careful to pinch together any cracks that form in the edges.  If the dough sticks to the counter, use a pastry scraper or butter knife to gently slide under the edges to loosen the dough from the counter.  Roll dough to 1/8 inch thickness for a tart or a little thicker for a pie plate.  Make sure the dough is evenly rolled out and brush off excess flour.  Fold in half two times and transfer to pie plate and unfold.   Center dough in pan and trim dough around edges of tart pan or flute, crimp or trim the edges of dough to fit pie plate.

To prebake, line the shell with a piece of foil or parchment paper, then fill will dried beans or pie weights (keeps crust from shrinking).  Bake for 15 minutes, or until golden around the edge.  Take the tart out of oven and remove the beans and foil.  Return to the oven and bake for another 5-7 minutes, until the tart is an even light golden brown.