French Onion Tart With Cheesy Thyme Pastry Recipes

FRENCH ONION TART WITH CHEESY THYME PASTRY

Steps:

• Put the flour in the bowl of a food processor with the 100g butter. Blitz until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs, then add 50g of the cheese, 1 tbsp of the thyme leaves, some freshly ground black pepper and 1 tsp salt. Blitz again briefly to combine. Add 2-3 tbsp cold water, and pulse again until it comes together into a dough. If you don't have a food processor, do this in a bowl - rub the flour into the butter first, then stir in the remaining ingredients with a knife. Wrap and chill for at least 40 mins.
• Meanwhile, heat the 25g butter and the olive oil in a large frying pan over a low-medium heat, and cook the onions with a pinch of salt for 40-50 mins, stirring often, until sticky, golden and very soft when pressed with the back of a spoon. If they start to catch, reduce the heat further and add a splash of water. Be patient, as they will take a while to caramelise, but keep your eye on the pan so they don't burn.
• Stir in the vinegar, sugar and the anchovies. Keep stirring until the vinegar has evaporated, and the anchovies have dissolved into the onions. Remove from the heat.
• Heat the oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5 and roll the pastry out onto a lightly floured work surface to a 3mm thickness. Use the pastry to line a 23cm tart tin (use the rolling pin to help you do this). Trim the edges so they're just overhanging the sides. Patch the pastry with the offcuts, if needed. Scrunch up a sheet of baking parchment, then open it out again to line the pastry, and fill with baking beans. Bake for 15 mins, remove the parchment and beans, then bake for a further 5-8 mins, or until the pastry looks dry, without any raw spots.
• Meanwhile, whisk the eggs, cream, remaining thyme and the rest of the cheese together with a pinch each of salt and black pepper. Stir in the caramelised onions. Trim the sides of the pastry using a serrated knife to neaten the edges. Pour the filling into the pastry case and tap the tin gently on the work surface to release any bubbles.
• Bake the quiche for 25-30 mins on the middle shelf of the oven until lightly golden and set in the middle, with a slight wobble. Leave to cool in the tin for at least 15-20 mins, then slice. To make the salad, whisk the olive oil and vinegar together in a bowl, then toss in the remaining ingredients. Pile the salad on top of the quiche, or serve alongside. If you like, leave the quiche to cool completely, then chill before serving. Will keep in the fridge for up to three days.

FRENCH ONION TARTLETS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Spray both sides of bread and press bread into small 12 cup muffin tin. If you do not own a muffin tin, disposable tins are available on the baking aisle of market. Place bread in oven and toast until golden, 7 or 8 minutes. Remove and reserve.
• In a skillet, melt butter into oil. Add onions and bay leaf, season with thyme, salt and pepper. Cook onions until caramel colored, 15 to 18 minutes.
• Turn broiler on.
• Place spoonfuls of cooked onions in toasted bread cups. Discard bay leaf. Cover onions with cheese and set tarts under hot broiler to bubble and brown cheese. Serve hot.

FRENCH ONION TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• On a work surface, roll the puff pastry into a roughly 10 by 16-inch rectangle. With a sharp knife, trim uneven edges to make a perfect rectangle. Evenly cut off the outer 1 inch of each side of the rectangle in strips; put the puff sheet on the baking sheet. Dip your finger in water and run around the top edges of the rectangle and replace the removed strips of pastry along the edges of the sheet, pressing lightly to adhere. With a fork, pierce the interior of the tart shell to prevent rising; do not pierce the adhered edges. Bake until the outer edges have puffed and are golden in color; about 15 minutes. Set aside.
• Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add onions and thyme sprigs and season well with salt and pepper, to taste. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions begin to brown. Add the stock, a tablespoon at a time, as the pan gets dry, scraping and stirring the brown bits that are stuck to the bottom oft the pan. When the onions are caramelized to a dark golden color, remove from the heat and discard the leafless thyme sprigs (the leaves fall off while cooking).
• When ready to serve, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Evenly spread the caramelized onions on the cooked pastry shell and heat in the oven until warmed through, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from oven, to a cutting board and cut into wedges. Arrange on a serving platter and garnish each wedge with a sprig of fresh thyme. Serve immediately and enjoy!

FRENCH ONION TART RECIPE

Steps:

• Peel and slice onion. Keep aside.
• Prepare the savory custard filling. Combine egg, liquid cream, thyme, salt and black pepper in a bowl to a smooth consistency. Keep aside.
• Place rolled out pastry dough into a tart pan and cut off extra on the edges. Poke into pastry with a fork to create small holes. That's so that the pastry doesn't deform when baking blind.
• Preheat oven to 400 Fahrenheit/ 200 Celsius.
• Place a cut out round baking sheet, which is fitting into the tart base, and keep beans or pie weights on the round cut out baking sheet. Bake your crust alone (called baking blind) for 15 minutes at 400 Fahrenheit/ 200 Celsius. *see notes if you want to skip this step.
• Heat up a pan with the butter and sautee onions soft. This can take 10-15 minutes (time added to total cooking time in recipe)
• Place cooked onions into the tart crust and spread out evenly. Pour savory custard mixture over the onions.
• Bake tart for 30 minutes at 400-430 Fahrenheit/ 200-220 Fahrenheit. *see Notes

BACON, ONION AND CHEESE TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper.
• In a medium saute pan, cook the bacon over a medium-low heat until it begins to render, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the onions and cook until they begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Season with pepper. Set aside to let cool. Add the thyme to the cooled bacon-onion mixture.
• In a bowl, combine the farmer's cheese, creme fraiche, egg yolk and salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.
• Flour a flat surface and place the puff pastry on top. Flour the top and gently roll into a 13-by-18-inch rectangle. Cut the pastry in half and transfer each to a lined sheet pan. Using a fork, dock the puff pastry (pierce it slightly with the tines), leaving a 1-inch border untouched.
• Divide the cheese mixture between the two sheets of pastry and spread evenly on the docked area. Top each tart with half of the bacon-onion mixture.
• Place the tarts in the oven on the lower racks and bake, rotating halfway through, until the crusts are dark golden, about 25 minutes. Garnish with the pecorino and chives.

CARAMELIZED FRENCH ONION TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• In a large sauce pan, melt the butter on medium heat.
• Add the onions, white wine, sugar, thyme, salt and pepper and cook the onions until softened and golden brown.
• While the onions are caramelizing, combine the Ricotta cheese and egg in a small bowl and set aide.
• Unfold puff pastry sheets on a a large cookie sheet making sure both sheets connect in the middle of the pan. Gently fold in each side of the puff pastry sheets approximately 1 inch.
• Spread the Ricotta cheese mixture evenly over the puff pastry and lightly sprinkle most of the Parmesan cheese on top. Reserve some to sprinkle on top of the onions.
• Add the caramelized onions evenly over the cheese mixture and top the tart off by sprinkling any remaining Parmesan cheese.
• Bake for 30 minutes until puff pastry is golden brown and cooked through.
• Cut into small pieces for appetizers or bigger pieces to eat as a main dish.
• Enjoy!

WARM ONION TART WITH THYME

Steps:

• Peel and cut the onion in half through the root. Trim the ends and then julienne the onion lengthwise.
• Melt the butter in a small sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onion and thyme and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 to 15minutes or until the onion is a deep golden brown. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Keep warm until ready to serve.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400°F.
• Peel and cut the onion in half through the root. Trim the ends and then julienne the onion lengthwise.
• Melt the butter in a small sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onion and thyme and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 to 15minutes or until the onion is a deep golden brown. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Keep warm until ready to serve.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400°F.
• Unfold the puff pastry sheet on a lightly floured work surface and turn over to prevent the creases from splitting. Pat down gently to flatten the sheet.
• Using a 1-inch round fluted cookie cutter, stamp out 6 rounds and transfer to an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 10minutes or until puffed and golden brown.

TARTE A L'OIGNON (FRENCH ONION PIE)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Place the bacon into a skillet, and cook over medium heat until browned. Remove bacon from skillet, reserving 4 tablespoons bacon fat, and drain on paper towels.
• Place the onions into the same skillet with the bacon fat, and cook over medium-high heat until evenly browned, about 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Combine the milk and cream in a bowl. Sprinkle the flour over the onions, and stir to blend. Stir in the milk mixture. Cook and stir over medium heat until the mixture thickens. Remove from heat, stir in the bacon, and set aside to cool 10 minutes.
• Beat the eggs in a mixing bowl until light colored and frothy. Stir a spoonful of the onion mixture into the eggs. Add another spoonful of the onion mixture, and continue stirring. Repeat, until all the onions have been stirred into the eggs and are thoroughly blended. Pour the mixture into the prepared pie shell. Sprinkle with nutmeg.
• Bake in preheated oven until the crust is lightly browned, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool 5 minutes before serving.