Bacon and Onion Tart

 

Served with a kale salad or my favourite, sautéed kale, this savoury custardy pie does not go a miss with a pint of Guinness or a tall glass of bitter cider. Even the next day chilled this is still an inviting and scrumptious slice that hits a welcoming spot.  

Bacon and Onion Tart

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Serves approximately 6

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

4 cups onions, thinly sliced

1 x 375 gram package of bacon, cut into thin strips

1 cup heavy cream

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon thyme

salt and pepper, to taste

1/2 cup Kerrygold Dubliner cheese (Aged Irish cheese)

1/4 cup Kerrygold Dubliner cheese (Aged Irish cheese)

Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC).

Do the prep work, slicing the onions, slicing the bacon and shredding the cheese. 

In a large frypan, heat the butter and olive oil together over medium heat, until the butter melts. Add the onions and sauté, stirring occasionally until they are translucent and golden, for about 15 minutes. Transfer the cooked onions to a bowl and set aside.

Add the cut sliced bacon to the same frypan and cook until crisp. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel and allow the bacon to drain. Set aside.

Either use a pre-made pie shell or ready-made pie crust (follow the directions) or make your own pie crust. I made my own pie crust, so the recipe will reflect that. Make a pie crust recipe of your choice and roll out the pie crust and press it into a baking dish, that's about 1 inch deep and 9 inches in diameter. Using a kitchen fork gently prick the dough slightly. Place a piece of aluminum foil or parchment paper over and fill it with pie weights, if you don't have any, use rice or dry beans, this prevents the pie crust from bubbling up. Bake for 12 minutes. Remove the weights and paper or foil and set aside.  

In a large bowl whisk together the heavy cream, eggs, thyme, salt and pepper. Stir in the cooked bacon, the carmelized onions and 1/2 cup of Kerrygold cheese into the egg mixture and mix well. Pour evenly into the prepared pie crust. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup cheese over top. Cover the wedges with a pie sheild or aluminum foil to prevent burning. 

Bake in the preheated oven for about 40 minutes or until the top of the tart turns a golden colour and a blade of a knife comes out clean. Remove from the oven, place on a wire rack and allow to cool for about 5 minutes before serving.

Chocolate Irish Whiskey Mousse Tart

 

A rich tart that should be served after a light meal or alone with a strong cup of coffee. The touch of whiskey adds a mellow flavour suitable for this indulgent dessert and the toasted hazelnuts and dark chocolate sprinkled casually on top compliment effortlessly. Although the recipe does call for the use of a ready-made shortcrust; I was inclined to make my own and you may feel that way too.         

Chocolate Irish Whiskey Mousse Tart

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serves 8 to 10

250g/90z ready-made sweet shortcrust pastry

400ml/14 fl oz double cream

140g/5oz plain dark chocolate, roughly chopped

2 tablespoons Irish whiskey

2 tablespoons icing sugar

chopped roasted hazelnuts for decorating, optional

chopped dark chocolate for decorating, optional

Preheat the oven to 200ºC/400ºF/ Gas mark 6. Grease a 9 inch/23-cm round tart tin.

Roll out the pastry on a work surface lightly dusted with flour to a round 5 cm/2 inches larger than the diameter of the tin. Line the tin with the now formed pastry. Prick with a fork, line with baking parchment paper and fill with beans, then bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes. Remove the paper and beans and bake for a further 2 minutes, then leave to cool in the tin.

Meanwhile, put 175 ml/6 fl oz of the cream in a saucepan and bring to a simmer over a low heat. Remove from the heat and add the chopped chocolate, stirring until melted and combined. Leave to cool to room temperature, then stir in the whiskey.

Whip the remaining cream with the icing sugar until stiff peaks form. Gently fold in the chocolate mixture until combined.

Pour the chocolate filling into the pastry case and chill for 1 hour 30 minutes, or until set. Serve chilled topped with chopped hazelnuts. It will keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. 

Apple Almond Galette

This is a free form tart. The more rustic and less uniformed the better. The addition of the almond paste makes for a more filling galette with endless options for fruit.  

Apple Almond Galette

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4 cups apples, cored and sliced

1/3 cup caster sugar (white sugar)

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 cup almond meal

1/2 cup icing sugar (confectioners sugar)

1 egg

pie crust, make your favourite recipe and use that or use a ready-made pie crust or ready-made puff pastry.

egg wash

1 teaspoon vanilla sugar 

Pre-heat oven to 350ºF (175ºC). Cover a flat surface wit baking parchment paper

Make your favourite pie crust recipe or if you are using a ready-made one; roll it out, on the flat surface that is covered with baking parchment paper. Transfer rolled pie crust with baking parchment paper underneath on to the baking tray. Trim any excess paper from around the edges of the baking tray. Set aside.

In a large bowl gently toss the apple slices, caster sugar and ground cinnamon together. 

In another bowl mix together the almond meal, icing sugar and egg, until a paste forms.

Spread the almond paste in the centre of the pie crust, leaving about 1/2 inch around the edges. Place the sugared apple slices over the almond paste. Fold the bare 1/2 inch of crust inward over the apples and almond paste; leaving the centre of the tart uncovered. Crimp down the edges with a fork as you go around the tart, if you wish. 

Make the egg wash, 1 egg white beaten with 1 tablespoon of water. Brush over the edges of the tart and sprinkle with vanilla sugar. Bake in the pre-heated oven for 40 minutes, or until golden brown. 

Notes: to make the spreading of the almond paste easier you may want to use a wet knife or spatula.  

Hibiscus Soda

I never heard of hibiscus soda until cruising the aisles at the one of the local organic grocery shops. I have drank hibiscus tea so I thought I would give this soda a try. It is quite tart, which I enjoyed immensely, refreshing and we all thought it had a cream soda like taste. It is low in sugar only 14 grams unlike other sodas and juice which can run anywhere from 25 grams up to 43 grams. Hibiscus soda is great on it's own or you could add a bit of gin for a lovely summer cocktail. 

Have a great weekend everyone! - JD