Italian Sausage and Fennel Galette

Galette is just a fancy term for a free-form tart.  This sausage and fennel galette is the perfect fall tart with its warm sausage, earthy fennel and fragrant sage and rosemary.  At first I thought it would remind me of a pizza because it's round and has a crust and sausage and cheese.  But it really doesn't taste like pizza at all.  The crust is very crisp, the cheese is less prominent than in a pizza, and there's no red sauce.  It's its own thing.  A really good thing, too.

Just note that the dough needs to rest in the refrigerator for about 45 minutes, which gives you time to make the filling before you bake the tart for about 35 minutes.  Assuming you cool the tart for maybe 10-15 minutes, the whole project will take you about 2 hours start to finish so it's maybe not a weeknight project unless you make the dough and the filling in advance.  In that case, it will take about an hour including cooling time.

Serve the tart with a bog green salad for a wonderful light fall or winter dinner.

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Italian Sausage and Fennel Galette

Serves 4

For the dough:

1 cup all-purpose flour

¼ cup (1/2 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into ½” pieces

½ teaspoon salt

1 egg

1/8 cup cold water

For the filling:

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

½ medium onion, thinly sliced

½ lb hot Italian sausage (pork or turkey), removed from the casing

1 medium fennel bulb, cored and thinly sliced crosswise

½ teaspoon fennel seeds

2 teaspoons sugar

5 oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, patted dry and thinly sliced

1 cup shredded smoked mozzarella

1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage

1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary

Black or white sesame seeds, for optional garnish

In a food processor, pulse the flour, butter and salt a few times until crumbly.  In a small bowl, whisk the egg with a fork. Put half the egg in a slightly larger bowl (refrigerating the remainder for brushing later) and add the ice water.  Whisk again to combine.

Add the egg and water to the food processor and pulse until the dough comes together more or less.  Turn out on a floured surface and bring together with your hands to form a ball.  Flatten into a disk and wrap in plastic wrap.  Refrigerate for 30-45 minutes.

While the dough chills, make the filling.  Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the sausage and sauté, breaking it up with the edge of a wooden spoon, until the moisture has evaporated and the sausage is lightly browned.  Remove the sausage from the pan and set aside.

Add the second tablespoon of olive oil to the same pan over medium heat.  Add the onions and sauté for a minute or two, then add the fennel and sugar and continue to sauté until the vegetables are softened and translucent (3-4 more minutes).  Remove from the heat and let cool.  When the sausage and vegetables are cool, combine them in a bowl with the cheese and fresh herbs.

Line a baking pan with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 375d.

On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough to a circle approximately 11” in diameter.  Gently fold into quarter and place on the parchment paper, then unfold.  Place the filling mixture in the center of the dough, then spread evenly leaving 1 ½“of dough uncovered around the outer edge.  Fold the edges over the filling and brush the edges with the remaining beaten egg. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, optional.

Bake for about 35 minutes until the crust is golden.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Rustic Greens and Potato Pie

Last Year's Post: Lentil Soup with Spicy Italian Sausage
Two Years Ago:  Savory Breakfast Scones

We all know that dark leafy greens are really good for us, but getting them into your diet is sometimes the hard part.  We also know it's good to eat vegetarian once in a while.  This rustic pie is a delicious option to meet both of those goals.  It's very flavorful and has a rich, creamy texture from the potatoes and cheese.   It's warm, earthy and hearty, perfect for a fall dinner on a cool night.  Serve it with a bright salad of corn, cherry tomatoes and green onions to balance all those earthy flavors.

It would make a wonderful meal for any vegetarians you might happen to know.  Or, you could always add cooked sausage or bacon to the pie if you're serving people who really want meat - and they'll still get the nutritional value of the greens.

I always like to talk about ingredient substitutions.  In this recipe you can use any combination of greens that you want - I chose half kale (bold flavor) and half spinach (milder flavor) but chard, collard greens or mustard greens would also work.  Regarding the cheese, I think you could substitute pretty much any cheese you want for the Gruyere - blue cheese would be an especially interesting choice.  If you go for blue cheese, for some reason a little voice in my head tells me that chopped walnuts would be a good addition.  Blue cheese and walnuts go well together.

This type of rustic pie is also called a galette or a tart.  As I mentioned, it's hearty enough to be a dinner entree, or you could cut it in small pieces served cold for a tapas party.  I particularly like this type of rustic pie because you don't have to be overly perfect with the pie crust - if the edges crack when you roll it out, no big deal - it's just that much easier to fold over the filling. 

The key is to make sure the greens have released their liquid and the liquid has evaporated prior to taking them off the heat, otherwise the filling may give up a little liquid when you cut the pie.  One tip is to set the greens aside for a few minutes to cool.  Drain any liquid that may have accumulated in the bottom of the bowl or pan before adding to the potatoes.  By the way, this goes for any greens added to any pie or quiche - you'll often see recipes for chopped spinach that tell you to squeeze all the liquid out prior to adding it to the other ingredients.  Same principle.

After that it's really easy to add the filling to the pie crust, fold the edges up and over, brush with a little egg and bake.  Although I didn't try it myself, I don't see any reason why you couldn't prepare the pie in advance and refrigerate it covered with plastic wrap, then bake it after coming home from work.  It might take a few more minutes in the oven since it's cold.

If you've been having a hard time figuring out how to get those dark leafy greens into your diet, this might just be the way.

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Rustic Greens and Potato Pie

Serves 4-6

Note:  A simple salad of cherry tomatoes, corn and green onions dressed with a little olive oil is an excellent accompaniment.

1 pie crust (homemade or store-bought)

¾ lb small boiling potatoes, such as Yukon Gold or Red Bliss

1 medium onion

2 pounds cooking greens, such as chard, spinach, kale, collards, or a mixture

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 ounces Gruyere cheese

1 ounce Parmigiano-Reggiano

1 cup ricotta

1/8 teaspoon fresh-grated nutmeg

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 large eggs

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Scrub the potatoes and cut them into 1 ½” pieces; place in a medium saucepan.  Add cold salted water to cover by 1”.  Bring the water to a boil over high heat; reduce heat to low and simmer the potatoes for 15 to 20 minutes, until tender when pierced with a knife.

Meanwhile, finely chop the onion (about 1 cup).  Thoroughly rinse and spin dry the greens, remove the tough stems, and chop the leaves (about 24 cups).  (The tougher the greens, the finer you should chop.)

Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until hot.  Reduce the heat to medium-low; add the onion and cook for 5 minutes until softened.  Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.  Add half the greens and cook for 4-6 minutes, until wilted.  Remove the greens with tongs to a medium bowl.  Repeat with the remaining greens.  Return the first batch of greens to the skillet and cook everything for 2 minutes more, or until any liquid that collected in the skillet has evaporated.  Set aside.

When the potatoes are done, drain and mash using a potato masher.  Combine the potatoes and greens in a large bowl and set aside to cool slightly.

Roll the pastry out to make a 12” round.  Fit the pastry into a 9-inch pie plate; press against the sides of the plate allowing the excess to hang over the edges.  Put the pie plate in the refrigerator while preparing the remaining ingredients.

Grate the Gruyere (about ½ cup) and Parmigiano-Reggiano (about 1/2 cup); fold the cheeses into the potato mixture along with the ricotta, nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste.

Lightly beat the eggs, reserving one tablespoon.  Stir the rest of the eggs into the potato mixture and spoon the filling into the pie plate.  Gently fold the overhanging pastry over the filling, pleating as necessary to make it fit.  It will make a border covering the edges of the filling but the center will be uncovered.  Brush the pastry with the remaining 1 tablespoon egg.

Bake the pie for about 40 minutes or until the filling is heated through and the pastry is golden.  Let stand 10 minutes before cutting.

In Praise of Asparagus

Asparagus is such a pretty vegetable, not to mention healthy - it contains antioxidants and anti-inflammatories as well as folate (heart health) and vitamin C.  Plus it's delicious!  Fresh local asparagus is one of the first signs of spring but you can also find it almost year-round in the grocery store.  Sometimes the spears are really thick (better for roasting) and sometimes they're really thin (better for stir fries) but for an asparagus tart you want spears that are medium-sized so they don't turn to mush during the baking period and are cooked to crisp-tenderness.

This tart is really easy and fast to assemble and would make a great brunch or lunch entree, a wonderful first course for a dinner party, or even a light vegetarian dinner with a salad.

Although my asparagus was beautiful, it wanted to curve for some reason.  I optimistically thought that I could talk it into straightening out by wrapping it tightly in paper towels and laying it flat in the refrigerator.  Right.  Anyway, I guess it's a matter of aesthetics whether you prefer your tart to have straight asparagus or curved asparagus.  Or maybe you won't have a choice, like me.  Either way, if you're a fan of asparagus you have to give this a try!


* * click here for a printable Asparagus Tart recipe * *



Asparagus Tart
Serves 4 (entrée) or 6 (first course)

1 sheet of frozen puff pastry
1 ½ cups shredded cheese (gruyere and mozzarella mixed)
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 lb asparagus
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper

Thaw puff pastry according to package directions. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Roll the puff pastry to a 10” by 12” rectangle and place on a baking sheet. Pierce the dough all over with a fork.

Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes, then remove and let cool slightly. Brush the crust with mustard and sprinkle evenly with cheese, leaving a 1" edge on all sides.

Cut the woody ends off the asparagus. Tightly line the crust with asparagus spears, alternating ends and tips and cutting to fit where needed. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake 20 minutes until the crust is well-browned and the asparagus is tender. Serve warm or at room temperature, cut into squares.

Roasted Tomato Tart with Goat Cheese and Black Olives

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Remember those tomatoes you roasted last summer?  This recipe is a great way to showcase them, not to mention that it makes a delicious light dinner with a salad and some crusty bread.  It's a good counter-balance to all those heavy dinners that are so prevalent at this time of the year, and it also makes great leftovers for lunch the next day.  If you didn't quite get around to roasting tomatoes last summer, it's OK because the recipe contains instructions for starting with fresh tomatoes.  They'll still taste great because roasting brings out all the flavors and sugars even in grocery store tomatoes.

This tart would also be good served for an easy brunch entree if you happen to be entertaining at this time of the year.  I like making it in a tart pan with a removeable bottom because it makes it easier to cut - I always have trouble getting the first piece out of a regular pie pan.  If you don't have a 9" tart pan you can use a pie pan instead.

Goat cheese gives the tart a mildly tangy flavor.  If you don't care for goat cheese you could certainly substitute any other cheese of your choice.  But if you haven't tasted goat cheese, give it a try.  The flavor is mild because it's mixed with mozzarella and it's a great complement to the olive, tomato, and fresh thyme flavors in the tart. 

I've really been trying to stretch myself when it comes to eating new foods, especially healthy foods.  I recently tried some brussel sprouts that The Lawyer's Sister #2 prepared for Thanksgiving and discovered that I really do like them when they're sliced and sauteed. My open-minded attitude still doesn't extend as far as raw oysters, however.  Slimy slippery disgusting little gray things.  Bleh.

Note that the recipe simply calls for a pie crust without mentioning the origin of said crust.  I knew I was on a slippery slope between the ardent pie-crust-makers on one side and the equally ardent pie-crust-in-a-box people on the other.  I didn't even want to get into that debate because you can't win.  It's sort of like discussing politics.  I still want to put my friend Ted (the Conservative) and my mom (the Liberal) in a closet and see who comes out alive.  I'm betting on mom.  She's little but she's feisty.

If you have roasted tomatoes in your freezer, pat yourself on the back and skip the first paragraph. 


* * click here for a printable recipe * *

Roasted Tomato Tart with Goat Cheese and Black Olives

Serves 6-8

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided

5 roma tomatoes, cored, halved lengthwise and seeded
Salt and pepper

1 pie crust

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

½ cup soft fresh plain goat cheese (about 4 ounces)
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme
2 large eggs
¼ cup half and half
1 large garlic clove, minced
½ cup pitted kalamata or nicoise olives, halved
3 tblespoons freshly grated parmesan cheese

To Roast the Tomatoes:

Preheat the oven to 350d. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil; brush foil with 1 tablespoon olive oil.  Place the tomato halves, cut side up, on the baking sheet.  Drizzle the remaining olive oil over the tomatoes and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Roast for 2 hours until shrunken and somewhat dried.  Cool tomatoes on the sheet.  (Can be prepared 1 day ahead.  Store in a covered container in the refrigerator.)

To Prepare the Tart

Transfer the pie crust to a 9 inch tart pan or pie pan, pressing pastry firmly onto the bottom and sides of the pan.  Fold overhang in and press, pushing the crust slightly above the pan.  Pierce the crust all over with a fork and place in the refrigerator to chill.

Preheat the oven to 375d.  Line the pastry with foil and fill with dried beans or pie weights.  Bake until the crust is set, about 20 minutes.  Remove the foil and beans and bake until the crust edges are golden, about 12 minutes longer.  Cool the crust 10 minutes and reduce the oven temperature to 350d.

Meanwhile, mash the mozzarella, goat cheese, and thyme together using a fork.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add eggs and half-and-half and stir until well blended.  Spread cheese filling evenly in the crust.  Arrange tomato halves (cut side up) and olive halves evenly over the filling.  Sprinkle parmesan cheese on the top.  Bake until the filling is puffed and set, about 35 minutes.  Cool 5 minutes.  Serve the tart warm.