Culinary Currents
October 2004

Setting the Stage with Savory Tartlets

By The Culinary Institute of America

Offer your guests something different this holiday season by featuring unconventional ingredients. Sun-dried tomatoes, creamy goat cheese, basil, garlic, and green onions merge as the base for warm bite-size hors d’oeuvres. Encased in buttery puff pastry shells, their small size and intense flavor make them the ultimate starter to the evening’s traditional feast.

To enhance the featured recipe, pair the tartlets with a pink sparkling wine. Sparkling wine, in general, fares well in the beginning of the meal because it tends to be light-bodied and the bubbles enliven the palate. Regarding the tartlets, the acidity of the wine will compliment the tartness of the goat cheese, the bubbles will clear away the richness, and the pink characteristic will highlight the flavor of the sun-dried tomatoes. For an affordable variety, try the Mionetto Prosecco or Domaine Ste. Michelle’s sparkling rose wine. Higher priced bottles, including Schramsburg and Iron Horse in Sonoma, also provide excellent choices.

When preparing the tartlets consider using prepackaged puff pastry. As a foodservice professional, you are aware that making it from scratch is a time-consuming and laborious process. Because prepackaged varieties yield consistent results, you can rely on uniform flavor, texture, and appearance. Be sure to plan ahead and thaw the puff pastry in the refrigerator overnight. If short on time, thaw it at room temperature and allow it to chill in the refrigerator before rolling.

Although puff pastry is typically judged by the height of its crisp, flaky layers, on occasion it’s also used as a thin layer or crust, as seen in the featured tartlets. To achieve this, it is imperative to dock the dough liberally after rolling it to the desired thickness. To further ensure the puff pastry will remain flat while prebaking the tart shells, cover the individual pastry-lined tarts with parchment paper and fill with pie weights, dried beans, or uncooked rice. This will achieve an even crust ideal for adding the remaining ingredients.

For more techniques or serving suggestions, consult The Culinary Institute of America’s Garde Manger: The Art and Craft of the Cold Kitchen. Additional convenient and cost-effective training materials produced by The Culinary Institute of America’s Food and Beverage Institute are available at http://www.prochef.com/fbi. To receive information regarding professional development courses at either campus, Greystone in Napa Valley, California and the Hyde Park campus in New York’s Hudson Valley area, please visit us online at http://ciaprochef.com or call our customer service representatives at 1-800-888-7850. Bon appetite!

Sun-dried Tomato & Goat Cheese Tartlets

• twelve ounces frozen puff pastry, thawed

• two garlic cloves, minced

• one-half teaspoon ground white pepper

• one and one-half tablespoons fresh basil, chopped

• one-third cup whole milk

• two tablespoons dry sherry wine

• two large eggs

• one and one-half teaspoons all-purpose flour

• one-half cup fresh goat cheese, crumbled

• one-quarter cup green onions, minced

• three tablespoons sun-dried tomatoes, minced

Preheat oven to 350°F.

On a lightly floured surface, roll the puff pastry to 1/8-inch thick. Once rolled, generously prick the surface of the pastry with a fork. Using a 2 ½-inch round cookie cutter, cut 30 rounds from the puff pastry. Be sure to apply firm pressure on the cookie cutter and avoid moving it back and forth when cutting.

Place each puff pastry round into a 1 ¾-inch round tart mold and press gently. Make sure there are no air pockets under the pastry.

Cover the puff pastry in the tart molds with a small piece of foil and fill with uncooked dried beans, rice, or pastry weights. Place the tarts on a cookie sheet and refrigerate for 5 minutes.

Bake the tart shells for 20 minutes. Allow them to cool completely and remove the foil and beans, rice, or weights.

Combine the garlic, white pepper, basil, milk, and sherry in a food processor. Add the eggs and flour and process until just blended.

Toss together the goat cheese, green onion, and sun-dried tomatoes. Place 1 teaspoon of the goat cheese mixture into each tart shell before filling with the egg mixture until nearly full, about ¾ teaspoon.

Place the cookie sheet with the tarts in the 350°F oven and bake for about 6 to 8 minutes, or until set.

Serve immediately.

Yield: 30 pieces