Smoked Salmon Chowder

When we were in Seattle this summer we had a fabulous smoked salmon chowder for lunch one day at Pike Place Market. It had capers in it which seemed unusual but really added a great salty tang. Now that soup weather has hit here in MN we decided to take a stab at making it ourselves.

Really the recipe is a pretty basic chowder recipe yet, the smokey flavor of the salmon & with the capers takes it to another level. It's not too heavy a chowder but, it has a real richness. This is a soup that comes together in 30 - 40 minutes making it a quick, satisfying lunch or dinner.

I was going to buy smoked salmon to make this soup but since we have so much Alaskan salmon in the freezer we decided to try smoking our own. Instead of pulling out the smoker we used one of the smoker bags we had left from out apartment days.

(Our smoker bags came from Williams-Sonoma but you can easily find them online like these on Amazon)

These bags turn your oven or grill into a smoker for about a pound of meat, fish or vegetables at a time. We've found they really do give the food a great smokey flavor (& your house will smell like an amazing bbg too). All I did to smoke the salmon was put a filet that in the bag, seal it up & put it in a 350 F preheated oven for 1 hour. The salmon came out fully cooked, flakey, moist & smokey. I didn't season it at all but it would be fun to experiment with putting sauces like teriyaki or maple on before smoking. This isn't exactly like the smoked salmon you buy in stores, which is most likely cold smoked, but its perfect for recipes like this. We plan on trying it again to use in pasta or a lentil salad.

Smoked Salmon Chowder

1 lb new potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch cubes, unpeeled
1 stalk celery, chopped
6 oz yellow onion, chopped
2 c chicken stock
1 1/2 T all-purpose flour
5 - 6 oz smoked salmon, flaked
2 c half & half
2 T drained small capers
1/2 t dried thyme
1 t kosher salt
pepper to taste
hot sauce (We used Crystal)

Put the potatoes, celery, onion & chicken stock in a large soup pot. Bring to a boil. Cover & reduce heat to low. Let simmer for 15 minutes until the potatoes are tender.

Sprinkle in the flour and stir until combined. Add the salmon, half & half, capers, thyme, thyme, salt, a few grinds of fresh pepper & a couple of dashes of hot sauce. Stir to combine. Let simmer for about 10 minutes. Taste & adjust seasoning as needed.

Serve with crusty bread & extra hot sauce if desired.

Makes 4 - 5 servings.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2010 Kathy Lewinski

Potato-dono

Saw this on the Soup this weekend & just had to share.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2010 Kathy Lewinski

Weekly Menu 9/27 - 10/2/10

No farmers market finds this week as we went up North for the weekend to enjoy a little fall color.

We couldn't have asked for a prettier weekend so we headed up the North Shore to the Split Rock Lighthouse which is celebrating its 100th Anniversary.

This time of year really makes us appreciate the beauty of living here in Minnesota.

On to Menu Planning Monday...

Sausage & Pepper - using the last of the peppers from the garden

Roast Chicken with Carnival Squash

Smoked Salmon Chowder - Inspired by our trip to Seattle this past summer

Fig & Camembert Tart

Pork Chile Verde

Chicken Curry

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2010 Kathy Lewinski

The Cranberry Tamale Experiment

The other day I was reading a review somewhere of some restaurant here in town that served tamales including a cranberry version (I was sick with a head cold & can't remember anymore details than that). Even though the reviewer wasn't blown away with the cranberry tamales, I was intrigued by the idea. When I ran the idea past Matt he agreed it sounded good but, when I told him I planned to use fresh cranberries in the filling he disagreed & said it should be dried. So, I decided to make a little of the filling each way.

I made each filling exactly the same except on included dried cranberries & the other fresh. The fresh version took on a nice pink color thanks to the cranberry juice.

Cranberry Tamale Filling

2 jalapeno, seeded & chopped

1 1/2 c grated quesadilla cheese

1 c chopped cranberries, fresh or dried

2 T heavy cream

Mix together.

Makes enough for 12 tamales (visit our original tamale post for directions on making tamales)

I made 6 tamales using each of the fillings & then we tasted...

The dried cranberry filling was far & away the taste winner of the two fillings. It had a much more intense flavor of cranberries & a nice sweetness. Also the tamales made with it seem to hold together better (perhaps too much juice escaped from the fresh ones). But all & all neither filling was exactly as I had hoped. The weren't bad by any means, just not all that exciting either.

I think this is still an idea worth playing with & maybe with some tweaking it'll be much better. Next time I'll add some shredded chicken or turkey to the filling. Also it needed more spice to play against the sweetness of the cranberries, the jalapenos were so mild they were almost flavorless, maybe that was just these jalapeno. Finally, I would use monterey jack cheese instead of the quesadilla cheese. The quesadilla cheese got a little hard & orange in some places like it had been over cooked, when I've used monterey jack in the past it just melted nicely.

I'm imagining trying a version of these with Thanksgiving leftovers...cranberry & sweet potato filling or cranberry sauce & turkey filling. Anyone else have some ideas?

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2010 Kathy Lewinski

Indian-Spiced Pot Pie

The other day I was chatting with someone on Twitter who was making an Indian pot pie. I immediately thought "that is something I want to make." So, on to this week's menu it went.

I made a really quick sweet potato curry as the filling for the pie. The filling has a nice creaminess thanks to the coconut milk but I think you could use some cream & get the same effect. Last minute I threw in some golden raisins to add some sweetness which was really a nice addition.

I was feeling pretty confident lately about my crust making skills but I had a lot of problems with this batch. It tasted really good & was nice & flaky but it was so tender it broke off the sides of the ramekins while cooking. I've never had this happen before. I think perhaps there was a little to much butter it in.

Indian-Spiced Pot Pie

1 T vegetable oil
1 c peeled, diced sweet potatoes
1 large carrot, diced
1 small onion, sliced
1 T curry powder
salt & pepper
1 T flour
1 c chicken or vegetable stock
1/4 c coconut milk
1 T mango chutney
1/4 c frozen peas
2 T golden raisins
Pie Crust (use your favorite butter pastry recipe or some store bought pie crust)
1 beaten egg

In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the sweet potato & carrot. Cook for about 3 minutes. Add the onion, curry powder & some salt & pepper. Cook until the onion is starting to get tender. Sprinkle the flour over everything & cook while stirring for a minute. Add the stock, coconut milk & chutney. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat & let simmer for about 10 - 15 minutes stirring from time to time, until the sweet potato is tender & the sauce is thickened. Stir in the peas & raisins. Divide between two ramekins (the ones I use hold about 1 1/2 cups).

Preheat oven to 400F.

Divide the pie crust into two discs & roll them out until about 1/8-inch thick & 1-inch wider than the ramekins. Brush a little beaten egg around the edge of the ramekins. Drape the dough over the ramekins allowing to drape about an inch over the sides. Brush with the beaten egg. Piece the crusts a few times with a fork or sharp knife. Place the pies on a baking sheet. Bake for about 30 minutes until the crust is golden brown.

Makes 2 individual pot pies.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.© 2007-2010 Kathy Lewinski

Tour de Farm at Oliver H. Kelley Farm

This weekend we went to our second Tour de Farm of the summer. The last Tour de Farm we went to was a sit down dinner, this one, on the other hand, was more of a family picnic with everyone spread out of blankets & at picnic tables. The venue was the Oliver H. Kelley Farm, a working 1860's farm run by the MN Historical Society.

Created with flickr slideshow from softsea.We got to tour the farm, play with the animals, help with the chores & of course, eat lots of good food. Dinner was a pork extravaganza thanks to Mike Philips, formerly of Craftsman now of Green Ox Foods along with Scott Pampuch & his crew . Apparently, Mike took a liking to a sow at the farm last year & this year she became our dinner, all 630 pounds of her! All the ingredients came from Oliver Kelley Farm as well as other MN are farms & were prepared without any electricity. Apple crisp (with just a hint of pork) & sweet corn ice cream on the porch of an 1800's farmhouse as the sun set on a warm fall evening was the perfect way to say goodbye to summer.

There are two Tour de Farms left this year, October 10th at Rogotzke Maple Syrup Farm in Duluth & New Year's Eve at Star Thrower Farm. Tickets are available to both here.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.© 2007-2010 Kathy Lewinski

Farro with Sausage and Chard plus Roasted Tomato Sauce

Oh fall, how happy we are that you have arrived with your hearty, warming dishes. How excited we are to get back into the kitchen filled with renewed energy & ideas.

Matt has declared this our go-to dish of the winter. And why not, it's simple to make (especially if you have tomato sauce already made), contains healthy ingredients & most importantly, tastes great. It's one of those rustic dishes with deep, mellow flavors that seems to just call out to be eaten in front of a fireplace. Farro makes a great base alternative to pasta or rice with a slightly nutty flavor & great texture. The Italian sausage can be mild or hot based on your preference. We used chard in this because we had some still in the garden but later in the winter we'll use some of the kale that we've blanched & frozen.

Farro with Sausage & Chard

4.25 oz dry farro
1/2 T olive oil
8 oz bulk Italian sausage
4 large chard leaves with stems. Stems chopped & leaves roughly chopped. Keep separate.
1 c tomato sauce (see below)
freshly grated Parmesan

Put the farro in a bowl & cover with cold water. Let soak for 30 minutes.

Put the farro & water into a saucepan. Add enough water to cover by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat & simmer uncovered for 10 minutes or until tender but still with a slight bite. Drain & set aside.

Hear the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage & chard stems. Sauté until the sausage is cooked through. Add the cooked farro, chard leaves & tomato sauce. Cook until heated through & the chard leaves are wilted.

Serve topped with grated Parmesan

Makes 2 servings

A good tomato sauce will really make a difference in the final flavor of this dish. You want one that is on the thicker side with lots of flavor. I made mine using a roasted tomato method recommended by my cousin. She buys a crate of tomatoes every fall to make sauce this way since it is her families favorite. Let me tell you, I'll be making tomato sauce this way myself from now on. Not only is it really easy (Just roast the veggies & then throw them in a blender with the seasonings, no blanching & peeling, no all day cooking.) but the resulting flavor is just amazing. The natural sugars in the tomatoes, onions & garlic start to caramelize during roasting giving the sauce a mellow sweetness that doesn't require any other sugar. The sauce comes out thick & dark with an intensity you don't get from jarred sauces.

Roasted Tomato Sauce

20 - 25 roma tomatoes, halved lengthwise
1 small onion, quartered
3 large cloves of garlic, peeled
olive oil
kosher salt
freshly grated pepper
1 T tomato paste
1 T balsamic vinegar
10 fresh basil leaves
1 t dried oregano

Preheat oven to 275 F.

Put the tomato halves, onion quarters & garlic on a baking sheet with sides. Drizzle with a little olive oil & stir making sure everything is coated. Turn tomatoes cut side up. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. Roast until the tomatoes are soft & the onions & garlic are golden about 2 - 2 1/2 hours. Let cool slightly.

Put the roasted vegetables & all remaining ingredients into a blender. Process until everything is chopped fine. Check for seasoning.

Makes about 2 cups.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.© 2007-2010 Kathy Lewinski

Farmers Market Finds and the Weekly Menu 9/20 - 8/26/10

We are back! Matt is home from California, my cold is finally gone, fall has definitely fallen & we are feeling a renewed energy to get back into the kitchen.

It was so nice to get back to the Kingfield Farmers Market this weekend. This is such an amazing time to buy at the markets with the last of the summer crops still available & the best of the fall crops just starting to come in. Here's what we picked up for the next two weeks.

Carnival Squash - We discovered this little squash two years ago & love it. They are the perfect size for me to cook one up as a side dish for the two of us.

Sun Street Beer Bread - Made with Lift Bridge Farm Girl Saison. Looking forward to having thick slices of this with leftover chili for lunch.

Carrots - For curry & as a side with lunch

Butternut Squash - Haven't decided what I'll use this in yet but I couldn't resist the first one of the season.

Leeks - Also not sure what I'll use these in yet but I like having leeks around just like having onions on hand.

Parsnips - These will probably go into a stew as well as get roasted for side dishes.

Roma Tomatoes - I'll be cooking these down to a sauce today.

Onions & Garlic - Just the pantry staples

Brussels Sprouts - These will get roasted as a side dish this week

Sweet Potatoes - Peter at Peter's Pumpkins told me that MN doesn't have the best soil for growing sweet potatoes so I was glad to find one vendor selling them. These are a mixture of both the yellow & white fleshed varieties. I'll use some in curry & the rest just roast as a side or perhaps in stew.

The market only has a couple more weeks before closing for the season so we'll be stocking up on things like squash & garlic to keep us through the winter.

On to Menu Planning Monday...

Farro with Italian Sausage, Chard & Tomatoes

Vegetable Curry Pot Pie

Meatball Sandwiches

Cranberry Tamales

Then we are heading up north to enjoy some of the fall color so I'll probably whip up a big pot of beef stew to take along with us.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.© 2007-2010 Kathy Lewinski

Eating Our Way Through Amsterdam

We got back from our latest adventure when Matt immediately hopped a plane to California for work & I was struck down with one of those "I've been on trains & planes with a lot of other people" colds. There's not much cooking going on around here so, luckily I have trip photos to share with you.

When preparing for our trip to Amsterdam we read over & over again in books & online that Amsterdam was not a foodie city. We were told that Dutch food wasn't really anything special & that eating "ethnic" food was the way to go. Well, we certainly felt like we ended up eating very well in Amsterdam enjoying lots of different cuisines.

The one thing we knew we had to have was Indonesian Rijsttafel. Rijsttafel, which translates to "rice table" is the Dutch adaptation of an Indonesian feast called nasi padang. It consists of many side dishes served in small portions, accompanied by rice prepared in several different ways. Popular side dishes include egg rolls, sambals, satay, fish, fruit, vegetables, pickles, and nuts. While wandering around the city our first day we stumbled on Sama Semo on Hoofstraat near the museum district. Matt had remembered it being recommended in one of our books so we stopped in & made a reservation. Luckily, he did as the restaurant was lively & packed with locals when we showed up at 8pm.

Our rijsttafel consisted of 23 dishes plus rice & noodles. From what I understand this is a small rijsttafel with 40 being a typical number of dishes. I can't imagine having more food than we did though!

(A side table is set up next to our table with hot plates on it then hot plates are also set down the center of our table to keep all the food warm.)

I expected a lot of spicy food but of all of these only one was too spicy for me. Half the time we weren't really sure what each dish was but this was really a super fun way to eat & try lots of new things.

I was craving some Italian one night & we ended up at Pasta e Basta. Now this place was quite an experience, totally cheesy & over the top but a great time. First of all their is the antipasto bar inside a grand piano...that is being played!

Then there is the fact the whole staff takes turns singing for you. Most of the songs were classic American easy listening & jazz though, we were treated to one opera aria. The best moment for me had to be when the manager preformed Spandau Ballet's "True" complete with dance moves throughout the restaurant, it was so Hugh Grant in "Music & Lyrics" I couldn't stop laughing. Ok, so the food here was really nothing to write home about, tasty but nothing special, but the restaurant was packed & everyone seemed to be having a great time.

Probably the best dinner we had in Amsterdam was at La Olivia, a busy Spanish restaurant in the high-end Jordaan neighborhood.

La Olivia had an actual tapas bar where you could go pick from lots of different tapas (almost all served on toast which I thought was interesting). They then plate up your choices & bring them to your table. You can eat the tapas as an appetizer to an entrée or as your whole meal. We decided to just eat tapas as our meal as they were so filling & it was fun to have some many different things. All of the food was excellent especially the fish dishes. The entrées here were actually quite expensive but we found our dinner of just the tapas was one of the cheapest we had the whole time there.

Our other dinner in Amsterdam was at De Duvel in the lively De Pijp neighborhood.
.

The restaurant seemed to be very hip & popular with a younger crowd. We were lucky it was a warm evening & we could enjoy dinner on the patio. The menu was very reasonable priced & changes every month. De Duvel calls their food fusion & I found the menu to be very similar to those you would find in a modern US restaurant, a little Asian, a little Italian & some good basic dishes. Matt & I both enjoyed some great beef dishes here.

I think we really liked the fact all the restaurants we went to seemed to be popular with the locals & not just aimed at tourists. We got lucky to get tables at most places without a reservation though if we had had our heart set on someplace I'd make sure to get one int he future.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.© 2007-2010 Kathy Lewinski

Canning Giveaway Winner

Thanks to everyone who commented & Twittered about the Canning Giveaway. The random number generator picked #36 which is...Natasha from Saved By The Egg Timer. I have to say I was happy to see Natasha win as she is a new food blogger based here in Minnesota so, not only does she win the prize but this gives me a chance to turn you all on to her blog.

We are back from our vacation & Matt flew right off of California for work. I'm at home fighting off a cold & jet lag so look for posts about our trip in the next couple of days. Oh, & we are going to another Tour De Farm this weekend, this time at a historical farm.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.© 2007-2010 Kathy Lewinski

Get Canning Giveaway

Summer is coming to an end & in our book one of the best ways to save the taste of summer is canning. Right now we are in prime tomato season, canning salsa & crushed tomatoes to use all winter. Our peppers are also producing heavily so we'll pickle some to use in those winter chilies. Many people have commented on the blog that they are afraid of canning or want to try but never have. We used to be just like that but then last year we picked up a copy of the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving & dove in. It was just so satisfying to have basement shelves full of locally sourced produce ready to use in the dead of a MN winter.

Recently, Ball sent me the Home Canning Discovery Kit which contains jars, lids & a jar lifter. Since we have a good stock of canning supplies we decided to share the kit with one of you in the hopes that someone else will discover the joys of canning. To the kit we will add a canning funnel, a magnet for handling hot lids & two jars of jam that we canned this year.

Here's how to enter...

1. Take a look through our preserving category & leave a comment telling us which canning recipe you'd like to try.
** If your email address is not on your blogger profile or available through your own blog or website, you MUST leave it in your comment so we can contact you

2. For an extra entry, Twitter about this contest & send me a comment letting me know you did.

The winner will be chosen with a random number generator on the morning of Tuesday, September 14th. Because of the cost of shipping this prize can only go to the US or Canada, sorry.

Disclaimer: Ball sent me the canning kit for free but did not reimburse me to write about it or to do a giveaway.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.© 2007-2010 Kathy Lewinski

Weekly Menu 9/6 - 9/12/10

This week's menu includes...

Frites
Waffles
Herring
Mussels
Rijsttafel
Chocolate
Beer
Jenever

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.© 2007-2010 Kathy Lewinski

Tomatillo Braised Chicken

So, we are in the midst of "eat everything that will go bad before vacation." There was a bag of tomatillo that I had planned to make salsa with for Matt's lunches. Then Swede Lake Farm gave us some of their tasty salsa & we didn't need anymore. So, I decided to make it into a sauce to use over grilled chicken (ok, basically salsa over chicken).

The resident griller wasn't feeling very motivated to leave the air conditioned living house to light the grill & came up the the brilliant idea that I should braise the chicken in the sauce instead. This actually worked so well & created a pretty quick one pot meal. The tomatillo sauce had a nice sweetness with just a touch of heat from the peppers & a little tang from the vinegar. Braising kept the chicken nice & juicy. We ended up taking the meat off the bone & mixing it in with the sauce & rice. I think you could probably do this with your favorite too just add some water if needed.

Tomatillo Braised Chicken

1 T olive oil
1 small onion, about 1 heaping cup chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
5 small peppers, seeded & chopped (we used 4 jalapenos & 1 cherry pepper)
1 lb tomatillos, remove outer papers & then chop
1 T white wine vinegar
2 bone-in chicken breast with skin removed
salt & pepper

In an oven proof pan with a lid heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic & peppers then sauté until the onions are translucent. Stir in the tomatillos & vinegar. Let simmer until the tomatillos are softened & starting to break down, about 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Salt & pepper the chicken breasts. Lay the breasts in the pot with the tomatillo mixture. Add enough water so the sauce is covering the chicken breasts about halfway. Cover & put into the oven. Cook for about 20 - 30 minutes until the chicken registers 160 F on a thermometer.

Serve the chicken with rice & the tomatillo sauce.

2 servings

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.© 2007-2010 Kathy Lewinski

Sweet Corn, Bacon and Tomato Tart

There are a couple of go to dishes that are perfect for when your fridge is full from your garden, farmers market or CSA. The first things that come to my mind are salad, stir-fry, pasta & pizza. Well, I think I can add tart to that list as well. Looking back is seems like we've done a lot of different versions with the summer veggies.

This one is full of sweet corn, tomato & jalapeno peppers all things which are currently in season at our farmers market & taste oh-so-good together. The sweetness of the corn & tomato plays perfectly against the saltiness of the bacon & spiciness of the peppers.

Texture-wise the filling of this tart fell apart a little more than I would have liked. I'm not sure if it was because my tomatoes were really juicy even after seeding or if a second egg would have helped. Maybe I just needed to work the cheese through the filling more (I think a lot of it stayed to the top). Not that the fact it fell apart affected our enjoying it in anyway.

Sweet Corn, Bacon & Tomato Tart

Crust

2/3 c all-purpose flour
1/8 t salt
4 T cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks
1 T + 1 t (or more) cold water

Filling

2 slices bacon, chopped
raw 2 kernels from 2 ears of sweet corn
1/4 c chopped red onion
1 jalapeno, seeded & chopped
1 tomato, seeded & chopped (I ended up with about a cup)
1 large egg
2 T cream + extra from brushing on the crust
2 oz grated sharp cheddar (I used white)
salt & pepper

Making the crust: Place the flour & salt into a food processor & pulse a few times to mix. Add in the butter & pulse until the mixture looks like a coarse meal. Add water & pulse. Squeeze the dough to see if it comes together, if its still dry add another 1 teaspoon. Flatten the dough into a disc. Wrap in plastic wrap & chill for 1/2 hour.

Making the filling: Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the bacon & cook until the fat starts to render. Stir in the corn, onion & jalapeno. Cook until the bacon is starting to crisp & the onion is translucent. Let cool a little.

Whisk the egg & cream together. Stir in the cheddar. Season with a generous about of salt & pepper.

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Grease a 6" pie plate with butter. Roll the dough out to about a 12" circle. Fit into the pie plate folding over the edge of the crust to make an edge. Mix the tomato into the corn mixture then pour into the crust. Pour the egg mixture over the top then press down with a spoon to help work through a little. Brush the crust with some cream.

Bake for 40 minutes or until the filling is firm & the crust is golden brown.

Let rest 10 - 15 minutes before cutting to serve.

Makes 2 servings.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.© 2007-2010 Kathy Lewinski