Goat Cheese Tart

Submitted by derMoerder

This is a dish from my four-course cheese menu for Iron Chef XV: The Big Cheesy

Ingredients[edit]

Holding your paring knife by the tip so you don't have lots of uncontrolled blade to slip up with, remove the root end of the tomato.
With a sharp blade, cut an X just through the skin on the other end of the tomato.

Drop the tomatoes into a large pot of boiling water for 15-30 seconds before moving them quickly into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. This blanch will let us peel the skin right off. The more ripe the tomatoes are, the more easily they will give up their skin.
Once cooled, use your paring knife to grip the skin against your thumb at the X and peel it off of the tomato
Quarter the skinned tomatoes lengthwise and cut out the ribs and seeds. Finaly chop the tomatoes and reserve.

In a saucepan heat up 3Tbsp of olive oil. In this sweat the shallots until soft, followed by the pasted garlic.
Add the chopped tomatoes to the pan, season lightly with salt and pepper, and cover with a parchment lid or a metal lid left ajar. We're just trying to keep all the moisture from escaping right away by partially covering the tomatoes.
Simmer lightly until the tomatoes are cooked and most of the moisture is gone. Season finally with salt, pepper and (if necessary) lemon juice. Toss in 2 Tbsp chopped parsley. Reserve.

Roll out your puff pastry one last time to 1/8in thickness and cut into circles sized to whatever small pastry molds you have handy.
Lay the circles into their molds and dock all around the bottom and sides with a fork, paying extra attention to the bottom.
Blind bake at 400°F, filled with a heap of dry beans. It should take about 20 minutes to brown the edges of the dough, at which point the beans should be removed and the bottom of the shell should be pushed down so it doesn't puff too much. Continue baking another 15-20min until GBD all around.

Clean your mushrooms with a mushroom brush or a damp paper towel and chop into small bite sizes.
Saute gently in olive oil until tender. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
Remove from the heat and toss with 1oz goat cheese and 1Tbsp thyme leaves. Check seasoning and adjust if necessary. Reserve.

Mix the vinegar, salt, pepper and walnut oil with a whisk to make the vinaigrette. Toss the baby spinach in this and plate.
In the warm tart shell, layer the hot mushrooms neatly beneath the hot tomato compote, leaving room for the goat cheese medallion.
Grind a pinch of black pepper and sprinkle a light pinch of fresh thyme onto a piece of parchment. Press the goat cheese medallion into this and then place it into the middle of the tart.
Drizzle the tart with good extra virgin olive oil, plate and serve.