During the summer holidays I suffered from a bit of tart tin-buying addiction. Even though I had never made a tart, sweet or savoury, I still thought I needed four different types of tart dish (not counting the six small ones I stole from my mum).
After getting my wonderful food processor for my birthday, the prospect of making my own pastry has become less daunting. It basically does it for me.
In fact, there is nothing quite as satisfying (apart from baking your own bread) as making your own pastry from scratch. Let me tell you now that a sweet or savoury short crust pastry you make yourself will blow store-bought pastry out of the water!
I know most students don't have access to a food processor, and that's why this recipe is so excellent. While I was lazy and used mine, the original (which I adjusted to make it more student-friendly) requires only a large bowl and a couple of hands to make it.
Last time I checked, brown onions were cheap. Oh so cheap. And so so delicious.
Making your own caramelised onions is super-easy. All you need is a saucepan, half a kg of onions (about 8 of those annoying small ones that come in those big bags from the supermarket) and a couple of tablespoons of brown sugar and balsamic vinegar.
You can buy balsamic vinegar for around $3.75 or something ridiculous on special. So don't use that as an excuse either.
I used only half a block of feta here. (When it's on special that works out at $1.75 or so for that ingredient.)
And what student flat isn't brimming with trays of ungraded eggs? The real reason I decided to make this was because, I kid you not, we had about 50 eggs in our fridge that needed using. Then after it turned out so well I decided to share it with you.
For extra richness in the filling, try using a tasty cheese, if you want less richness, a mild or an edam will do the job perfectly well.
When I made the pastry I included 30g of parmesan cheese that had been grated. This is totally optional, but it definitely added something special to it. If you want that cheesy flavour, perhaps try adding some tasty, but not too much.
Because parmesan is such a hard cheese, it doesn't soften your pastry. The moisture content in tasty is much higher, so it can cause the pastry to be less crisp. And trust me, you want crisp pastry!
The trick to good pastry is to keep everything cold. This means the scarfie flat is the perfect place to make it. Don't over-handle and don't underestimate the importance of letting the pastry rest in the fridge!
So if you are chilling out one Sunday afternoon and find yourself with a bit of free time on your hands, a tonne of eggs and only onions in your cupboard (as you are all too hungover to do the flat shop yet!), this tart is for you.
Serves 4-6
Very loosely adapted from the book Treats from Little and Friday, by Kim Evans (because which student fridge seriously has two blocks of feta and their body weight of gruyere lying around in it?)
For the pastry
75g butter, slightly softened
1¼ cups flour
½ tsp smoked paprika
30g finely grated parmesan (or tasty if that's all you've got)
1 tsp salt
a good grinding of pepper
1 small egg
2 Tbsp cold water
For the caramelised onions
500g brown onions (about 8 small ones or 5 large ones)
4 Tbsp brown sugar
3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
For the rest of the tart
125g feta (half a packet)
1 cup grated cheese (edam, tasty, your choice)
12 eggs
A splash of milk (as in maybe 2 Tbsp)
Salt and pepper to taste
All of the caramelised onions
To make the pastry
In a large bowl, rub the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles a fine, crumby texture. Mix in the grated cheese, smoked paprika, salt and pepper. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg and the water.
Make a well in the centre of the flour mix and pour the egg into it. Mix together to form a soft dough.
Form the dough into a disc shape, wrap in cling wrap and leave to rest in the fridge for at least an hour. It can be kept in the fridge for up to two weeks.
Once the dough has rested, heat in the microwave for 10 seconds to soften a little. Roll the pastry out on a lightly floured bench. Take your metal (don't use ceramic!!) tart tin and lightly spray it with cooking spray, or grease it using some oil and your fingers.
Roll the pastry out so it measures the diameter of the tart tin plus enough to cover the sides (diameter + height + height).
Carefully drape the pastry over the tart tin and gently press the pastry into it using your fingers. Use a sharp to trim the edges. Return the pastry case to the freezer while you get everything else ready.
To make the caramelised onions
Thinly slice all the onions. Place them in a saucepan along with the vinegar and sugar. Cook them on a high heat, stirring frequently.
Once they soften, turn the heat down and let them simmer until all the liquid has been reduced and they are a nice dark brown.
To assemble the tart
Place a baking tray in the oven and preheat to 180degC. You will place the tart on this to make sure the bottom crisps up.
Scatter the grated cheese on the base of the tart. Follow with the caramelised onions and feta cheese.
In a separate bowl, whisk together all the eggs, milk, salt and pepper. Pour this mixture over the top of the onions and feta until it reaches about 2mm below the edge of the tart.
If it spills over the edge you are going to have a fun time removing the tart from the tin.
Carefully transfer the tart to the baking tray then return the baking tray with the tart tin to the oven. Bake for 50 minutes or until the pastry browns up and the egg becomes firm to the touch.
Remove from the oven and leave to cool for 20 minutes before attempting to remove from the tin. Serve with a nice light salad and a good dolloping of onion marmalade, if you have some!
It really isn't that hard and very rewarding! I managed to get an "it's edible" out of Alex, which is code for "I don't want to admit that this actually tastes pretty good because that might make Sophie feel good about herself". Win!
If you have any leftover pastry from the offcuts, try making a mini-tart for your lunch the next day. You could use a muffin tray if you don't have a small tin. Use about 2 eggs for it.
Enjoy!
• Interested in baking? Visit Sophie's blog, http://sophielikescake.blogspot.co.nz
