savory rustic tarts, two ways

i've been waiting for the heatwave to end just so that i could turn the oven on to make these lovely buckwheat tarts. so simple and rustic! i was inspired by a tomato tart that my friend laura brought over a couple of weeks ago. but rather than bake it in a tart shell, i opted for a more free-form presentation. it saves time and looks great too! the dough for these is made with a combination of buckwheat and spelt flours and you can fill them with anything, really. mine, for instance, were filled with (1) thin potato slices, roasted garlic, caramelized onion, rosemary, capers and parmesan cheese and (2) feta, tomatoes, artichokes and arugula. they take about an hour and 15 min to make but are well worth the effort.



buckwheat-spelt tart dough

this dough recipe is a modified version of the galette dough from Veganomicon (see my apricot galette post). i mixed in some buckwheat flour since it works so well with their savory fillings.

1 cup buckwheat flour
1 cup spelt flour
3/4 cup veggie margarine
1/2 cup water
1 T cider vinegar
1 T salt

mix the flours together; cut the margarine into the flour in 3 batches; mix until the flour/margarine mixture becomes crumbly (i usually use my hands here).
add the cider vinegar to the water; add the water-vinegar mixture to the flour in batches until the ingredients are fully incorporated; kneed the dough until a ball forms and it stays when pinched (you may have to add a little more flour or water, depending on consistency).
refrigerate the dough for 30mins (or longer, but then you must leave it out for 10 or so min until it is easy to manipulate again). flatten it out, roll out into a free form shape (mine were rounded).

this makes enough dough for 1 large tart or 2 medium size ones. serves 4.

potato rosemary tart
1-2 small potatoes
0.5 onions (white or red)
0.3 cup grated parmesan
1 sprig rosemary
4 cloves garlic
1T capers
1T olive oil

slice the potatoes thinly, slice the onions; toss both with olive oil, place on a baking sheet or in a heavy cast iron skillet (with the unpeeled cloves of garlic on top) and bake at 425F until golden (about 10-15 min). peel the roasted garlic.

feta tomato tart
2 ripe tomatoes
0.5 cup bulgarian feta
handful of arugula
2-3 artichoke hearts (in water), quartered
1T pine nuts
some parmesan

slice the tomatoes, place in a colander (in the sink or over a bowl) and sprinkle with some salt - let stand to get the excess moisture out. crumble the feta, quarter the artichoke hearts.

now, assemble...

place your rolled out dough on a greased baking sheet; layer your chosen ingredients on the dough, leaving an inch or so on all sides (for the crusty, folded over edge). i start with the cheese and then place all ingredients on top of each other ending with the herbs, some cracked black pepper, sea salt and a sprinkling of parmesan cheese, pine nuts... fold over to create a finished edge - its fine if the edge is uneven here, it gives it that rustic look!

bake for 25-30mins or until golden.
delicious, hot or cold!