French Onion Tart Recipe

For a savory and sharp bite to that summertime picnic, give this recipe for Onion Gruyére Star Tart Squares a try.

Recipe courtesy of Chef Lisa Resch, Carolina Catering Co., Naples
Photography by Vanessa Rogers

French Onion Gruyére Tart

   Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp. 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 all purpose or whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/4 teaspoon (2 grams) fine sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1 cup (3 ounces) Gruyére cheese, shredded
• 4 tablespoons (2 ounces) very cold butter, shredded using a box grater
• 1 to 2 tablespoons cold seltzer

Filling:

Heat olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add onions and sauté for two minutes. Cover pot, reduce heat as low as it can go without shutting off, and cook onions down and released a lot of their liquid, about 20 minutes.

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; pulse 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 disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.

French Onion Tart

Preheat the oven to 400ºF.

Remove cover from the pot of onions, raise heat to medium, add 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 transfer onions to a medium bowl using a slotted spoon.

   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.  Use remaining dough scraps to roll out and cut decorative shapes to use on top of the tart.

   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.

Make your summertime picnic a gourmet affair with these tasty recipes.