Caramelised Onion Tart (Pissaladiere)

Traditional, a pissaladiere is pizza-like based caramelised onion tart, topped with anchovies and olives, which is often served in Italy and France. The tart itself makes an excellent packed lunch or dinner (served with a salad). All I'm saying is give it a try, I know caramelised onions sounds like it will take ages to cook, and yes it does when you're starving, and the end result is worth the effort.

Serves 2 (or one greedy person-like me) (Recipe Adapted from Little Book of Lunch)

• 1/3 sheet puff pastry, you can used pre-made or make your own (if using pre-made puff pastry, remove from the freezer a day before)
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 large onions, thinly sliced
• knob of butter (about a 1 tbsp)
• 1 large tbsp. dark brown sugar
• 2 spring thyme
• 6 anchovies
• 6 black olives
• A little milk for brushing
• a glass of water
• salt and pepper

Equipment Needed:

• Baking sheet lined with baking paper
• Frying Pan
• Wooden Spoon
• Pastry Brush
• Small bowl
• Glass
• Rolling Pin
• Fork
• Chopping board
• Knife

1.Turn the oven to 400f/200c/Gas Mark 6 and remove the pastry from the fridge. Grease and line your baking sheet.

2.Add the oil to the frying pan, place on medium heat and add the onions. Stir occasionally.
3.Add the butter, sugar, salt and pepper to the onions. Add the water to create a saucy consistency and to prevent burning.
4.Add the thyme and leave to cook for 15-20 minutes. Keep topping up the water occasionally and adding it to the pan.

Once the butter, sugar, salt and pepper has been added, the colour should start changing:

 

After 6 minutes

After 15 minutes

After 20 minutes

Ta-Duh! Done! Brown colour and soft onions that have reduced in size.

5.Meanwhile, roll out the puff pastry to fit your baking sheet. Trim or cut to fit. Place on the baking sheet and fold over the sides about 1cm to create an edge. Prick (or if you want to be all expert and pastry about 'dock') the base with a fork to let the steam out and prevent rising.
6.When the onion are soft and a dark brown colour (as seen in the last onion picture), take off the heat and spoon the mixture onto the pastry base taking care no to go over the 1cm edges. Smooth this with a knife.

7.Place the anchovies on top with a criss-cross pattern and add the olives in the middle of the pattern.

8.Brush the edges (with a pastry brush, not an old paintbrush. Don't worry its my version of a pastry brush so its clean.) with milk for a nice colour and bake for 12 minutes, until the pastry is crispy and golden.

Variation:

Ok if you're not a fan of anchovy or olives then that's fine. You can make a nice alternative by skipping out the thyme during cooking and crumbling over 50g feta cheese and THEN adding the thyme by sprinkling it on top.

Fun Things to do with Puff Pastry

My previous post was how to make puff pastry from scratch. This post is about the fun things you can make from puff pastry including Bande aux Fruite, Cream Horns, Eccles Cakes, and Palmiers. 

A Bande aux Fruite is an rectangle shaped fruit tart that is filled with pastry cream originating in France. 

Recipe: Bande aux Fruite

• Puff pastry
• Pastry cream (click here for recipe)
• Fresh fruit of your choice (I used kiwi, strawberry and peach)
• Apricot jam to glaze

Equipment:

• Rolling pin
• Knife
• Non-stick board
• Piping bag
• Baking sheet with silicone paper

1. Roll out the puff pastry to rectangle shape. Trim the sides so its straight edges.
2. The side strips should be about 1 1/2cm thick.
3. Dab water down the sides and lay strips on the long sides of the rectangles. Make a pattern on the strips if needed.
4. Brush with egg wash and rest for 30 minutes.
5. Prick the middle of the puff pastry to let the steam out. Cook at 215c/Gas Mark 7/ 425f for 15 mins.
6. Once taken out of the oven and cooled. Put the pastry cream into a piping bag and pipe onto the middle of puff pastry.
7. Cut desired fruit and place in lines to decorate.
8. Heat up an apricot glaze to finish the fruit.

Cream horns are strips of puff pastry rolled around a horned mold (no jokes please) baked and filled with cream chantilly (icing sugar and whipped cream).

Recipe: Cream Horns

• 200g puff pastry    
• 100g jam
• Cream Chantilly
• Egg white
• Caster sugar
• Softened butter
• Flour to dust

Equipment:

• Rolling pin
• Non stick board
• Pastry brush
• Knife
• Cream Horn molds
• Star nozzles
• 2 piping bags
• Baking sheet with silicone paper

1.  Brush softened butter over the cream horn molds and flour them well.
2. Roll out the puff pastry to 2mm thick very long rectangle.
3. Trim off edges that measure 1 ½ cm wide.
4. Start wrapping the pastry strip around the pointed end of the cream horn mold. Make sure the pastry overlaps slightly.
5. Seal the end of pastry with egg white and dip the round horn end into caster sugar.
6. Bake 220c/Gas Mark 7/ 425f for 20 minutes.
7. Once cooled pipe a line of jam on flat end cream horn.
8. Pipe in a swirl of cream.
9. Dust the cream horns with icing sugar.

The eccles cake, rather puff pastry not really a cake, is named after the town in North England, and has been around since 1793. Some rather interesting nicknames for this 'cake' is fly cake, flies graveyard and squashed fly cake! This may be for the currents squashed into the cake. 

Recipe: Eccles Cakes

• 250g Puff pastry
• 100g Brown Sugar
• 30g butter
• 120g currents
• A pinch of mixed spice
• Egg white

Equipment:

• Rolling pin
• 2 Circle cutters
• Baking sheet with silicone paper

1. Roll out the pastry approximately 1.5mm thick.
2. Cut out with a round, 4 inch cutter.
3. Place a tablespoon of filling in the centre of each piece.
4. Fold the edges into the centre, sealing in the filling and then turn over.
5. Either flatten with the palm of the hand.
6. Wash the tops with egg white or water and dip into caster sugar.
7. Make 3 slits on the top with aknife so the filling shows through.
8. Allow 30 minutes resting time.
9. Bake at 215c/Gas Mark 7/420f for 10 minutes
10. Check after 10 minutes.

Recipe: Palmiers

The palmier, meaning palm tree, has very mysterious origins but has earned the nickname 'elephant ears' due to the shape. They can be made with cinnamon or dipped in chocolate or made with savoury ingredients. 

• 250g Puff pastry
• 100g Caster Sugar
• A pinch of cinnamon
• Water

Equipment:

• Rolling pin
• Baking sheet with silicone paper
• Small bowl

1. In a small bowl, mix together sugar and cinnamon.
2. Sprinkle ¼ cup of sugar on a clean work surface.
3. Gently unfold one of the pastry sheets. Place the pastry sheet on top of the sugared work surface.
4. Sprinkle the top side evenly with water and ½ of the sugar to within ½ inch of the edges. Gently press the sugar into the pastry.
5. Using  rolling pin, gently roll out the dough into a 9 x 15 inch rectangle.
6. Using your fingers, roll the dough length-wise into a long cylinder, as tightly as possible without stretching it. Stop when you reach the middle. Do this for both sides.
7. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.
8. Using a sharp knife cut the dough crosswise so that you have little thin ‘scroll’ slices.
9. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for an 1 hour.
10. Preheat oven to 220c/Gas Mark 7/425f and bake for 5 minutes.
11. After 5 minutes reduce the oven to 200c/Gas Mark 6/400f and bake for another 10 minutes.
12. Remove from the oven using a thin spatula transfer to a wire rack to cool. 

I hope you enjoyed this post about the wonders of puff pastry! 

Bake On!

Penny

Making Puff Pastry

Puff pastry is one of the most unique creations of the cookery world. It consists of making layers by folding flour paste and a fat of the same texture. It can be used for a variety of dishes including sweet and savoury recipes.
What makes puff pastry distinctive is the layering of the fat and flour paste; it isn't completely combined. The fat forms a sperating layer which, when cooked, retains the steam generated by the water in the dough and produces the layer separation effect. The flour paste, which includes part of the fat, becomes crunchy and takes on a golden tone. (Practical Cookery 11th Edition).

This recipe makes around 5-8 portions. 

• 200g strong flour  (Plus extra for rolling) 
• 200g butter
• 125ml ice cold water
• Few drops of lemon juice
• A pinch of salt

Equipment:

·       Mixing bowl

·       Wooden spoon

·       Sieve

·       Rolling pin

·       Knife

·       Non-stick board

·       Cling film

1.     Sieve the flour and salt.
2.     Rub in one quarter of the butter.
3.     Make a well in the centre. 
4. 
5.     Add the water and lemon juice, and knead well into a smooth dough in the shape of a ball.
6. Relax the dough in a cool place for 30 minutes.
7. Cut a cross halfway through the dough and pull out the corners to form a star shape.
8.  Roll out the points of the star square, leaving the centre thick.
9. Knead the remaining butter to the same texture as the dough. 
10. This is very important: if the fat is too soft it will melt and ooze out, if too hard it will break through the paste when being rolled. 
11. Place the butter on the centre square, which is four times thicker the flaps.
12. Fold over the flaps.
13. Roll out to 30 x 50 cm, cover with a cloth or plastic and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes in a cool place. 
14. Roll out to 60 x 20 cm, fold both the ends to the centre and fold in half again. (This is one double turn)
15. Allow to rest in a cool place for 20 minutes.
16. Half turn the paste to the right or left.
17. Give on more double turn; allow to rest for 20 minutes.
18. Give two more double turns, allowing to rest between each. Your pastry should not have any butter sticking out of it. 
19. Allow to rest before using. 

In the next post I'll be posting some recipes that can be made using puff pastry. 

Bake On!

Penny