In JennieÕs Kitchen
meals made easier, one
recipe at a timeª
French Onion Tart
Serves 6 to 8
For the filling:
1 tablespoon extra virgin
olive oil
2 pounds yellow onions,
peeled & sliced thin
2 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves
removed & stems discarded
Sea salt and freshly ground
pepper, to taste
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon sherry vinegar
2/3 cups (2 ounces) Swiss
cheese, shredded
For the Swiss cheese
pastry crust:
3/4 cups (110 grams) whole
wheat pastry flour
1/4 teaspoon (2 grams) fine
sea salt
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 cup (3 ounces) Swiss
cheese, shredded
4 tablespoons (2 ounces)
very cold butter, shredded using a box grater
1 to 2 tablespoons cold
seltzer
To make the filling, heat
the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions and
saute for 2 minutes. Cover pot, reduce heat as low as it can go without
shutting off, and let cook until onions have cooked down and released a lot of
their liquid, about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare the
crust. Add the flour, salt, and paprika to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse
once or twice to mix the dry ingredients. Add the cheese and butter, then pulse
a few times until it forms a sandy-looking mixture. Add 1 tablespoon of
seltzer, pulse again until a rough ball of dough comes together. If the mixture
is too dry and crumbly, add more seltzer 1 teaspoon at a time (you may not need
the entire 2 tablespoons), and continue to pulse until you have a ball of
dough. Turn the dough out onto an unfloured counter, flatten and shape into a d
Preheat the oven to 400¼F.
Remove cover from the pot of
onions, raise heat to medium, add the thyme and season with salt and pepper.
Let the onions cook, stirring occasionally to scrape the browned bits from the
bottom of the pot, until onions turn golden brown, about 30 to 35 minutes. When
onions are golden and very tender, stir in the sherry vinegar. Remove from heat
and, using a slotted spoon, transfer onions to a medium bowl.
Place the chilled dough
between two sheets of parchment paper, and roll it into a 13-inch circle. Fit
dough into a 9-inch ungreased springform pan. Fold down sides of dough, leaving
a 1-inch high crust.
To finish the filling, add
the egg and cheese to the bowl with the onions. Stir to mix well. Pour mixture
over the tart crust and spread to the edges using a rubber spatula. Bake for 25
minutes, until slightly puffed and golden. Remove from oven and let cool for 5
to 10 minutes before slicing.