Sunday 10 November 2013

SWISS CHARD, LEEK & PEAR TART


Today is just another beautiful day. The sun is shining, there is no wind and from my balcony I can see the Mediterranean Sea flat as a lake. So after having a late sunday breakfast I suggest making a picnic and go to the beach.  Im so grateful to be able to live in this amazing weather.
So I decided to make a tart thats easy to transport inside a plastic container and that won't crumble apart on our 25 minute ride to El Rosario beach. I found some amazing pears on the organic market during the weekend so why not use them?
I packed some avocado, fresh fruit and some left over marbled cake I had from yesterday. Perfect!



Swiss chard, leek and pear tart
Makes a 35 x 10 cm rectangular tart

Ingredients:

Crust:
140 grs brown spelt flour
15 grs buckwheat flour
15 grs chickpea flour
40 grs. almonds
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
30 ml olive oil
60 ml water

For the filling:
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large leek, sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
250 grs  chopped Swiss chard (remove tough ribs but keep the tender ones)
1 tsp salt
pinch of grated nutmeg
2 eggs

1 tbsp of cornstarch
125 ml coconut milk
30 grs. Gruyere cheese (optional)
1 medium pear, thinly sliced


Directions:
Preheat oven at 180 C degrees.

To make the crust, combine the flours, almonds, baking powder and salt in a food processor. Process until almonds are powdered. Add the olive oil and the water. The dough should come together, if not, add more water/flour as needed. Fill the tart mold with the dough and press gently. Cut any excess and refrigerate for 15 minutes.  Blind bake the tart by covering it with a piece of parchment paper and some dried beans. Bake for 15 minutes. Then remove the dried beans and the paper and bake for another 10 minutes. Let cool while preparing the filling.

Bring a large pan filled with water to a boil and blanche the Swiss chard. Strain and reserve. In a sauté pan, heat the olive oil and add the chopped leek and the garlic. Cook until tender. Add the Swiss chard, 1/2 tsp of salt, black pepper and fresh grated nutmeg. Cook for 4 minutes and set aside.
Whisk the eggs with the coconut milk, the cornstarch and 1/4 tsp of salt.



Fill the tart crust with the Swiss chard mix, top up with slices of pear. Press the filling down and pour the custard over it. Top with grated Gruyere if desired.
Bake at 180 C degrees for 25 minutes or until golden brown. Let it cool slightly before cutting.


Hope you try the recipe. We are back from spending an amazing day at the beach where I had all the intention of taking pictures of our beautiful picnic but my camera had no battery :(
So, can't share the breathtaking views from the Sea, but I will tell you that the tart was delish!
Have a fantastic week filled with positiveness, yes, thats the way my friend!
Viva la vida!!

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