The Reach: Goat Cheese & Ratatouille Tart

Ratatouille.  It's like a stew, right? Why do they call it that?  If you're gonna name a food, you should give it a name that sounds delicious.  Ratatouille doesn't sound delicious.  It sounds like "rat" and "patootie."  Rat Patootie!  Which does not sound delicious.

Linguini, Ratatouille

This recipe comes from a wonderful cook book given to me by my boss at christmas, called Farmer & Chef Asheville.  The cook is a compilation of over 200 recipes from restaurants, bed & breakfasts, and farms around Asheville, NC.  Asheville is one of my favorite places in the world, and the recipes in the book are outstanding.  This particular recipe was contributed by A Bed of Roses Victorian Bed & Breakfast.  I highly recommend this cookbook to anyone who loves delicious recipes!  The recipe is slightly augmented here, but it came out beautifully!  The recipe for the tart actually only calls for 1 cup of ratatouille, so in making the tart, you also get lots of ratatouille to eat for other meals!

What you need:

     For the ratatouille

• 2 Leeks, white parts only, sliced
• 3 cloves crushed garlic
• 2 bunches green onions, sliced
• 1/2 cup chives, diced
• 1/4 cup rosemary
• 1 green bell pepper
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp Italian herb mix
• 4 large tomatoes, coarsely chopped
• 2 zucchini, sliced
• 1 eggplant, diced
• 3 tbsp parsley
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper

     For the tart crust:

• 1 1/2 cup flour
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup vegetable shortening
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1/4 cup cold water

     For the tart filling:

• 4 large eggs
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 cup ratatouille
• 4 oz. goat cheese

To make the ratatouille, start by heating the oil and garlic over medium-high heat in a large sauce pan.  Next, add in the leeks, green onions, onion, and green pepper, and cook until tender.  

Next, add in the chives, red pepper, and rosemary, cooking for approximately a minute.

Add in the tomatoes, stir, and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes.  Next, add in the zucchini and eggplant and simmer uncovered for an additional 15 minutes.  

After 15 minutes, remove from heat, add salt, pepper, and parsley, and stir.  

Got the ratatouille made?  Great!  Move on to the tart crust.  For the crust, whisk together the flour, salt, and sugar.  Next, add in the shortening and butter and mix everything until you have a breadcrumb consistency.  Now add in the water and continue to mix.  It should be a damp, crumbly mixture.  

Add the dough to a lightly floured surface and roll it out into a 10 1/2 - 11" circle.  Grease the bottom of a pie pan, and then put your rolled crust into the pan, rolling the ends over the edges of the pan.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes, pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees, pierce a few holes in the bottom of the crust, and put the pan in the freezer for ten minutes.

After 10 minutes, take a piece of foil large enough to fit over the crust, oil one side, and then place the foil, oil side down, over the crust.  Use pie weights, beans, or rice to weigh the foil down, and bake the crust for 10 minutes.

Now you're ready to finish the tart!  After removing the crust from the oven, whisk together the egg, salt, and heavy cream.  Add the ratatouille to the pie plate.

Next, crumble the goat cheese over the ratatouille.  

Then pour the egg mixture over everything.  Return the dish to the oven and cook for 40 minutes.

Voila!  The finished product serves about 6.  Enjoy!