Corn, Tomato and Spinach Olive-Oil Galette

Corn, Tomato and Spinach Olive-Oil Galette

by | Le Blog, Recipes and Culinary Nutrition

Corn, Tomato and Spinach Olive-Oil Galette

Olive-oil galette–Is it a tart? A pizza with a folded edge? A pie you eat for dinner?

Olive-oil Galette

It’s delicious no matter what you call it and, depending on your fillings, this olive-oil galette works for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

This quick, easy tart base can be made anytime with basic pantry ingredients since butter isn’t a primary ingredient. It works as a weekday meal but fits many occasions from picnics (simply eat slices by hand) to an elegant dinner with wine and real silverware.

Another advantage of adding an olive-oil galettes to your menu, other than sounding fancy French when you say “Galette” (a French word that actually sounds like it looks), is how easy it is to prepare for all eating styles from plant-only to eat everythingtarian.

 

Corn, Tomato and Spinach Olive-Oil Galette

Serves 12 as appetizer or 6-8 as a meal with a side

Crust Ingredients

 2 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup fresh-grated parmesan
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup plus 1-2 tablespoons ice water

Optional: Add 2 teaspoons toasted fennel seed or 1½ teaspoon toasted cumin seed

Galette Filling
2 teaspoons olive oil
12 ounces grape tomatoes, cut in half (about 2 ½ cups whole)
2 ears corn kernels (about 1¼ cup or 1 can drained and dried)
3 large garlic cloves, minced fine
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, minced (or ½ teaspoon dried thyme)
¼ teaspoon salt
10 ounces (about 8 cups) spinach
Optional: ½ cup fresh peas, blanched in salted water
4 eggs, prepare one for egg wash
¾ cup ricotta
1 cup grated gruyere (2.25 ounces), divided

Crust Steps:

  1. Add flour, salt, parmesan and any spices to a food processor; pulse until blended. Pour in olive oil while pulsing to mix into flour, you may need to break up large clumps. Then slowly pour in ½ cup cold water. Dough will start to pull away from sides and clump together, but if not, add a bit more water up to 2 tablespoons. Dough should feel smooth, moist but not tacky. Remove from food processor.
  2. Knead dough for about 30 seconds then form into a ball. Press the ball of dough into a disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or up to 2 days maximum or freeze for later use.

Filling and Tart Steps:

  1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, add olive oil. When oil is warm, add halved tomatoes, corn, garlic, pepper flakes, thyme and salt. Cook 8-10 minutes to reduce liquid. Add spinach, use tongs to toss to evenly wilt it—about 2 minutes. Remove from heat, let cool.
  2. Preheat oven to 375˚ Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or coat one with olive oil. Place dough a floured counter, press the disc to flatten enough to roll out with a rolling pin. Sprinkle some flour on the dough or rolling pin and roll from the center towards the edges to create a circular, but imperfect, shape about 15” wide and ¼ inch thick—look for an even thickness overall. Pick up an edge and lift it to over the pin (think curtain rod) to lift the dough and place flat on the baking sheet.
  3. Mix together 3 eggs, add ricotta and all but ½ cup of gruyere, add cooled cooked ingredients, mix.
  4. Pour mix onto the center of the dough, spread it within 2 inches of edge. Fold dough border up over the filling either in small square sections or pleated sections. Brush the dough with egg wash.
  5. Bake 30 minutes, then top with the remaining ½ cup gruyere. Bake another 10 minutes or until crust is golden brown and center feels firm. Let cool before serving.

Serving options:  Serve warm or at room temperature. Stores well for 3-4 days before crust begins to soften or break down.

Related Recipe: Here’s another recipe that could be a tart or pizza: https://eatwellacademy.com/corn-and-cremini-chickpea-cauliflower-pizza/ 

    About Me

    The pleasure of food, good health and well-being through simple habits for eating well and flexitarian low-key cooking.
    Michele Redmond

    Michele Redmond

    French-trained Chef, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist & Food Enjoyment Activist

    It's about Making Food First

    Get Eat Well Academy periodic updates on easy ways to choose and cook foods that satisfy your appetite, nurture your body and make eating well a pleasure.

    Marmalade Macaroons or Rochers à la Noix de Coco

    Marmalade Macaroons or Rochers à la Noix de Coco

    by | Le Blog, Recipes and Culinary Nutrition

    Marmalade Macaroons or Rochers à la Noix de Coco

    Add macaroons to your dessert menu to master a classic French treat with Italian origins that’s surprisingly quick and easy. Macaroons (mac-uh-ruinz) based on coconut, look and sound nothing like the butter-cream filled almond cookies macarons (mac-kaw-rhone except only pronounce half the “n” for that special form of French nasal linguistic torture). To avoid confusion, the French versions are called Rochers à la Noix de Coco (coconut rocks) or simply Rochers Coco to be short and slang.

    Marmalade macaroons are not traditional. Typically, macaroons have three-ingredients (sugar, coconut and egg whites) that can be formed into playful shapes, often into a cone or pyramid shape in France. They’re most delicious when the tops and sides or edges have extra crispy browned, nearly burned bits. This marmalade macaroon was inspired by delicious marmalade I experienced while living in France and pleases any crowd with chewy-crunchy textures.

    Fast & Easy Marmalade Macaroons

    Makes 20

    Marmalade Macaroon TheTasteWorkshop.com

     

     

     

    Ingredients

    5 ½ cups (14 ounce bag) sweetened coconut flakes
    ½ cup sugar
    ⅛ teaspoon salt (optional, but helps balance the sweetness)
    4 egg whites
    4 tablespoons marmalade, minced (If marmalade is very syrupy and thin, use 3 tablespoons)

    Steps

    1. Preheat oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
    2. Stir together coconut, sugar and salt in a bowl.
    3. Add egg whites and marmalade and mix with a large serving fork or spoon.
    4. Scoop two tablespoons onto parchment paper in a mound and continue to make more mounds spaced about 2 inches apart. Fill a small bowl or cup with water, dip your fingers into water and with fingers of both hands, form each mound into a pyramid, wetting fingers as needed.
    5. Place on middle rack in over, cook for 16-20 minutes or until firm on the sides and the edges and tops have begun to turn dark brown, nearly a burnt look.
    6. After removing from oven, carefully slide onto two baking racks set side by side to fit the baking sheet size.
    7. Let cool to eat if you can wait and store in the refrigerator in a covered dish.

    Here’s an unscripted Facebook Live Video where I chat about bitter oranges, coconut flake differences & forming the pyramid shapes.

    Happy Macaroon Day! The best 15 minute, 3-4 ingredient dessert ever if you like coconut. I'm showing a marmalade version with French influences (the shape) and in France–often called Rochers à la Noix de Coco (coconut rocks) or Roches Coco to be slang and short.

    Posted by Michele Redmond on Thursday, May 31, 2018

     

     

     

      About Me

      The pleasure of food, good health and well-being through simple habits for eating well and flexitarian low-key cooking.
      Michele Redmond

      Michele Redmond

      French-trained Chef, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist & Food Enjoyment Activist

      It's about Making Food First

      Get Eat Well Academy periodic updates on easy ways to choose and cook foods that satisfy your appetite, nurture your body and make eating well a pleasure.

      Lentil Mushroom Walnut Pate: Savory Bean-Meat Swaps

      Lentil Mushroom Walnut Pate: Savory Bean-Meat Swaps

      by | Le Blog, Recipes and Culinary Nutrition

      Lentil Mushroom Walnut Pate: Savory Bean-Meat Swaps

      Lentil pink peppercorn pateSwapping out a meat-based ingredient for a plant-based one is a balancing act of texture, taste qualities (like umami) and flavors from aromatic compounds. Particularly with liver—can you think of any plant that tastes or smells like it? Please let me know if you do.

      Liver is a cheap ingredient that many cultures embrace and adore but can be an acquired taste due to its strong odors, unique and sometimes metallic flavors and texture challenges. My first whiff of liver was thanks to my childhood friend Mary whose father regularly cooked the beef version as a breakfast “treat” on his favorite cast-iron pan.

      I dreaded being asked to try it, but never was asked. I didn’t taste liver until I lived in Paris, where you were expected to appreciate pâté.

      Pâté commonly uses chicken liver which has distinct poultry flavors, but this umami-rich lentil version is popular at parties among traditional pâté-lovers and non-meat eaters. Walnuts and mushrooms add texture and savory notes (particularly umami from plant-based glutamate). Cornichons and lemon add brightness, cayenne gives a hint of eat, Madeira offers a soupçon of sweet and pink peppercorns surprise with complex flavors like resin.

      Lentil Mushroom Walnut Pâté

      Makes nearly 2 ¾ cups

      Pate Ingredients

      ¾ cup dried green lentils (if using cooked about 2 cups)
      ¼ teaspoon salt
      1 cup walnut pieces (about 5 ounces), toasted
      1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
      2 tablespoons reduced-sodium tamari
      1 teaspoon fresh minced thyme
      few pinches cayenne pepper (less than ⅛ teaspoon)
      2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
      12-14 (about 10 ounces) medium-sized cremini mushrooms
      ¼ teaspoon salt
      1 small onion, diced (about 1 cup)
      2 cloves garlic, minced (about 1 teaspoon)
      1 tablespoon Madeira or marsala
      8-10 cornichons, diced fine (about 3 tablespoons)
      1 ½ teaspoons pink peppercorns, lightly crushed

      Prep Steps

      1. Check lentils for debris, put in pot, add 3 cups water and the salt. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to maintain a rapid simmer for 20-24 minutes or until lentils are tender (more tender than if using in a salad). Drain well in a colander to remove excess water. This can be done a day in advance.
      2. Toast walnuts in a skillet. Add walnuts, lentils, lemon juice, tamari, thyme and cayenne to a blender.
      3. Clean and dry mushrooms and cut into 1/4”-1/2” thick slices. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, add mushrooms and sprinkle with the salt. Cook without stirring until browned on one side (about 6-8 minutes), toss them and cook 4-6 more minutes. Add to blender.
      4. Reduce heat to medium, add remaining tablespoon of oil to the skillet then the onions and garlic, cook 4-6 minutes. Add madeira and sweat the onions about 6 more minutes or until onions are soft and liquids have evaporated. Add to blender and process pâté until smooth.
      5. Scrape mixture into a mixing bowl. Mix in one teaspoon of peppercorns and 2 tablespoons of cornichons. Use remaining ½ teaspoon of peppercorns and tablespoon of cornichons as garnish. Refrigerate until use, keep for 7 days in the refrigerator or freeze for a couple months.

      Pate Serving Options

      1. Serve pâté with crostini, baguette slices, toasts, crackers or on slices of cucumber.
      2.It also works as a sandwich spread or a filling to stuff cherry tomatoes.

      Other Veggie-Meat Swaps

      Try this other savory use of walnuts to mimic meaty-umami flavors in my walnut, mushroom ragout.

        About Me

        The pleasure of food, good health and well-being through simple habits for eating well and flexitarian low-key cooking.
        Michele Redmond

        Michele Redmond

        French-trained Chef, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist & Food Enjoyment Activist

        It's about Making Food First

        Get Eat Well Academy periodic updates on easy ways to choose and cook foods that satisfy your appetite, nurture your body and make eating well a pleasure.

        Meaty Walnut Mushroom Ragout: Flex Your Meatless Options

        Meaty Walnut Mushroom Ragout: Flex Your Meatless Options

        by | Le Blog, Recipes and Culinary Nutrition

        Meaty Walnut Mushroom Ragout: Flex Your Meatless Options

        Walnut Mushroom Ragout (Ragoût, for zee French appetite)

        This walnut mushroom ragout (pronounced like the Italian Ragù) is a veggie and meat-eater favorite that delivers a ground-meat texture and umami-meaty flavor from toasted walnuts. Walnuts are high in umami flavors from free glutamate, the amino acid primarily responsible for savory, brothy, meaty flavors. They’re also high in omega-3 fatty acids that most of us struggle to get into our diet in meaningful amounts and, as a nut, walnuts uniquely are an excellent source of the plant-based form alpha-linolenic acid.

        walnut mushroom ragoutDon’t let the nutrient-rich profile and French name fool you into thinking this is a fancy health food; ragout is your basic comfort food. A French ragoût can have any range of vegetable or meat ingredients, but an Italian ragù, with the same sounding name and diverse applications, is traditionally meat-centric.

        From the French verb ragoûter, meaning to “refresh or stimulate the appetite” (the noun goût means taste) .

        Combined with common ragoût ingredients such as tomatoes and mushrooms, it’s a crave-worthy dish that complements polenta, pasta or rice and can mimic ground meat in some dishes. By making a few additions, like adding vegetables common to bolognese or spices common to sloppy joes, this dish can flex in multiple directions.

        I first demonstrated this dish at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris as part of a plant-based class on using plant-based umami to make veggies more crave-worthy.  It also showcased at the national Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo in Chicago to highlight how to create vegan meals that omnivores, and everyone, will love.

        Walnut Mushroom Ragout Ingredients

        1 ½ cup (about 3.5 ounces) unsalted walnut pieces
        1 pound cremini mushrooms (white button can substitute okay)
        ¼ teaspoon salt
        2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
        3 tablespoons tomato paste
        1 medium yellow onion, diced fine (about 2 cups)
        2 medium-sized cloves garlic, minced or grated (about 2 teaspoons)
        ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
        1 cup dry white wine or dry vermouth
        1 tablespoon reduced-sodium tamari
        6-8 sprigs fresh thyme, minced (about 1 teaspoon)

        Steps

        1. Heat walnuts in a skillet over medium heat, tossing frequently for 3-5 minutes until toasted. Pour into a food processor and pulse or chop by hand until resembling ground meat.

        walnut mushroom ragout prep

        2. Rinse the mushrooms to remove any dirt. Keep stems, but slice of any ends that may have trapped dirt or debris. Slice mushrooms ½” thick. Put in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on high for 3 minutes. Stir and microwave another two minutes.

        3. Heat a large skillet over a medium-high heat and use a slotted spoon remove the mushrooms into the skillet, keep the mushroom liquid. Sprinkle on the salt and cook mushrooms without stirring. Once start to dry out (about five minutes), add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and toss mushrooms. When mushrooms closest to the pan surface are brown (about 8-10 minutes) stir or toss, cook 2-4 minutes longer then pour into a bowl.

        4.Add to the still warm skillet the remaining tablespoon of oil and tomato paste. Reduce the heat to medium, stir to cook the paste for 2-3 minutes.

        5. Add the onion, garlic, smoked paprika, walnuts and mushrooms. Stir and cook 2-3 minutes. Add wine, tamari and mushroom liquid, cook until walnuts are tender and liquids are absorbed but the mixture is still moist (20-25 minutes). Stir in minced thyme. Season with salt if needed. If desired, add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil for additional rich, supple textures.

        walnut mushroom ragout prep | Thetasteworkshop.com

        Walnut Mushroom Ragout Serving Options

         

        walnut mushroom ragout

        Serve with polenta, rice, pasta and baked potatoes or add as a meat substitute for stews or turn into sloppy joes by adding classic sloppy joe spices and ingredients like bell peppers.

        Walnut Storage Tips:  Because of the luscious nature of walnuts (lovely fat qualities), store in the refrigerator if using soon or the freezer if they won’t be used for a month or more.

        More info here at https://walnuts.org/how-to/how-to-buy-care/

         

          About Me

          The pleasure of food, good health and well-being through simple habits for eating well and flexitarian low-key cooking.
          Michele Redmond

          Michele Redmond

          French-trained Chef, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist & Food Enjoyment Activist

          It's about Making Food First

          Get Eat Well Academy periodic updates on easy ways to choose and cook foods that satisfy your appetite, nurture your body and make eating well a pleasure.

          Easy French Brown-Butter Tart

          Easy French Brown-Butter Tart

          by | Le Blog, Recipes and Culinary Nutrition

          Easy French Brown-Butter Tart

          Easy French Brown-Butter Tart

          For bakers and home cooks who bake often, making tarts is easy enough. However, not everyone, including me, appreciates the specific measuring and techniques required for good tart dough. Now, after discovering this easy brown-butter tart, I’m dreaming of future tarts.

          The dough is similar to a pâte sablée (“sandy” dough). It’s tender and crumbly like shortbread, holds its shape well and has a delicate brown-butter flavor. So, while it won’t replace all varieties of tart options, it can substitute for many sweet and savory versions.

          I discovered this recipe while reading a post by David Lebovitz who wrote that upon hearing about this:

          ”I almost started choking. “Surely, you jest!” I wanted to cry out in disbelief”…”It was all just crazy-talk.”

          The source, Paule Caillet of Promenades Gourmandes, is a culinary instructor I know through her Paris market tour cooking classes. The recipe works well, but after multiple tests, I made a couple minor ingredient revisions and heated the butter mixture on a cooktop rather than in the oven.

          Brown-Butter tart

          Brown-Butter Tart Recipe

          Serves 8

          Adapted from a recipe by Paule Caillat of Promenades Gourmandes

          Ingredients:
          • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter (3 ounces or 85g) cut into chunks
          • 1 tablespoon flavorless cooking oil such as grapeseed or organic canola
          • 1 tablespoon sugar (5 ounces or about 142g)
          • ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt (about 3 pinches)
          • 1 cup of all-purpose flour (5.5 ounces or 156g)
          Steps:
          1. Butter a 9” (23cm) tart pan (removable bottom is best) and turn oven to 400˚F (204˚C).
          2. Add butter, oil, sugar and salt to a 6-8” pot or rounded sauce pan and turn heat to medium heat.
          3. Foam and bubbles will begin to form as the water evaporates from the butter. When butter is melted (about 3 minutes) briefly stir to mix ingredients and let cook for 4-6 minutes more or until you see a tan color form in the center or around the edges. At this point remove from the heat as this tan color can quickly overcook to a dark brown (a Beurre noir) sauce.
          4. Remove the pot from the burner, add the flour and stir with a soup spoon (works best) or spoonula until the dough begins to pull away from the sides and stick together. Place the dough into the center of the tart pan and spread it across the base with the back of the spoon.
          5. When the dough is still warm but cool enough to touch, press it with your fingers spreading it evenly across the base (it will be thin) and up the sides.
          6. With a fork, prick around the dough base about twenty times, then bake on the center rack for 8-10 minutes or until the tart dough is golden brown. Once the tart is cool, fill to your delight.
          • If you use a dark pot it will be hard to see when the butter is the proper color.
          • Whole wheat substitutions will not yield the same flavor or texture.
          • European butters or Kerry Gold Irish butter for example, have lower water content than most commercial American butters. This may increase the evaporation time a bit during browning and may cause the mixture to “spit” or “pop” hot liquid a bit. Swirl the pan once or twice if this happens to reduce “spitting”.
          • The tart base can be prepared a day in advance
          • Use as a savory tart base as well but leaving out the sugar. Sugar does affect dough structure, so it will not be the exact same tart base, but it will work.

          The Queen of Hearts, she made some tarts, All of a summer day: The Knave of Hearts, he stole those tarts And took them quite away!

          1865  Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

            About Me

            The pleasure of food, good health and well-being through simple habits for eating well and flexitarian low-key cooking.
            Michele Redmond

            Michele Redmond

            French-trained Chef, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist & Food Enjoyment Activist

            It's about Making Food First

            Get Eat Well Academy periodic updates on easy ways to choose and cook foods that satisfy your appetite, nurture your body and make eating well a pleasure.

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