Pate Brisee For Roasted Pepper Saffron Tart Recipes

ROASTED-PEPPER SAFFRON TART

Steps:

• To roast bell peppers, place them directly on a gas burner over high heat. Roast until charred, turning as each side blackens. (Alternatively, roast peppers on a baking sheet under the broiler, turning as each side chars.)
• Transfer peppers to a large bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Let stand until cool enough to handle, about 15 minutes. Using paper towels, peel off blackened skins. Lay peppers flat on a clean work surface. Using a sharp paring knife, remove stems, seeds, and ribs. Finely chop peppers, and set aside.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out pate brisee to a 1/8-inch-thick round about 12 inches in diameter. Brush off excess flour, and wrap dough around rolling pin. Lift it over a 9-inch round fluted tart pan, and place dough in pan. Gently press into sides and bottom. Trim dough flush with edge. Using a fork, lightly prick all over bottom of dough. Freeze 20 minutes.
• Remove tart shell from freezer. Line with parchment paper, and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until edge begins to brown, about 20 minutes. Remove parchment and weights, and continue baking until bottom of crust is golden, about 7 minutes more. Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool completely.
• Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees. In a small saucepan, heat the cream over medium-low heat until just warm, and remove from heat. Add the saffron, and let steep, covered, 15 minutes.
• In a medium skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Add shallot, and cook, stirring, until fragrant and soft, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the vinegar and reserved peppers. Season with salt and pepper, and set aside.
• In a small bowl, whisk together the saffron cream, egg, and egg yolks, and season with salt.
• To assemble tart, spread red-pepper mixture evenly over bottom of tart shell. Carefully pour cream mixture over red-pepper mixture. Bake until custard is set, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer tart to a wire rack; let cool slightly before serving.

PATE BRISEE (PIE DOUGH)

Steps:

• In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar. Add butter, and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, 8 to 10 seconds.
• With machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream through feed tube. Pulse until dough holds together without being wet or sticky; be careful not to process more than 30 seconds. To test, squeeze a small amount together: If it is crumbly, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time.
• Divide dough into two equal balls. Flatten each ball into a disc and wrap in plastic. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill at least 1 hour. Dough may be stored, frozen, up to 1 month.

PATE BRISEE (FLAKY SWEET PASTRY DOUGH)

Steps:

• Place one cup of flour, the butter, sugar and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Process just until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs, about 10 seconds. Add the water and slowly pulse just until the pastry begins to hold together, about six to eight times. Do not let it form a ball. Turn the pastry out onto waxed paper and flatten the dough into a circle. If the dough is excessively sticky, sprinkle it with several tablespoons of flour. Wrap in waxed paper and refrigerate for at least one hour.

BASIC FRENCH TART DOUGH/PATE BRISEE (DORIE GREENSPAN)

Steps:

• FOOD PROCESSOR METHOD: Put the flour, sugar, and salt in the processor and whir a few times, until the butter is coarsely mixed into the flour. Beat the egg with the ice water and pour it into the bowl in 3 small additions, whirring after each one (Don't overdo it - the dough shouldn't form a ball or ride on the blade) You'll have a moist, malleable dough that will hold together when pinched. Turn the dough out onto a work surface, gather it into a ball (if the dough doesn't come together easily, push it, a few spoonfuls at a time, under the heel of your hand or knead it lightly), and flatten it into a disk.
• HAND METHOD: Put the flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Drop in the bits of butter and, using your hands or a pastry blender, work the butter into the flour until it is evenly distributed. You'll have large and small butter bits, and that's fine - uniformity isn't a virtue here. Beat the egg and water together, drizzle over the dough, and, using your fingertips, mix and knead the dough until it comes together. Turn it out onto a work surface, gather it into a ball (if the dough doesn't come together easily, push it, a few spoonfuls at a time, under the heel of your hand or knead it some more), and flatten it into a disk.
• Chill at least 3 hours or up to 5 days.
• When you're ready to bake the tart shell, butter a 9 - 91/2inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom (butter it even if it's nonstick).
• To roll out the dough: Roll out the dough between sheets of wax paper or plastic wrap or in a lightly floured rolling cover; or you can roll it out on a lightly floured work surface. If you're working between sheets of paper or plastic wrap, lift it often so that it doesn't roll into the dough, and turn the dough over frequently. If you're just rolling on the counter, make sure to lift and turn the dough and reflour the counter often. The rolled-out dough should be about 1/4 inch thick and at least 12 inches in diameter.
• Transfer the dough to the tart pan, easing it into the pan without stretching it. (What you stretch now will shrink in the oven later.) If you'd like to reinforce the sides of the crust, you can fold some of the excess dough over, so that you have a double thickness around the sides. Using the back of a table knife, trim the dough even with the top of the pan. Prick the base of the crust in several places with a fork.
• Chill - freeze - the dough for at least 1 hour before baking.
• Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400°F Press a piece of buttered foil (or use nonstick foil) against the crust's surface. If you'd like, you can fill the covered crust with rice or dried beans (which will be inedible after this but can be used for baking for months to come) to keep the dough flat, but this isn't really necessary if the crust is well chilled. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper and put the tart pan on the sheet.
• TO PARTIALLY BAKE THE CRUST: Bake for 20 minutes, then very carefully remove the foil (with the rice or beans). Return the crust to the oven and bake for another 3 - 5 minutes, or until it is lightly golden. Transfer the baking sheet to a cooling rack and allow the crust to cool before you fill it.
• TO FULLY BAKE THE CRUST: Bake for an additional 10 minutes, or until it is an even golden brown. Transfer the baking sheet to a cooling rack and allow the crust to cool before you fill it.

TOMATO TART

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place garlic on a piece of aluminum foil. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil. Wrap to enclose garlic in foil, and place on a small baking sheet. Bake until soft and golden brown and the tip of a knife easily pierces the flesh, about 45 minutes. Remove from oven; set aside. Raise oven temperature to 450 degrees. When garlic is cool enough to handle, using either your hands or the dull end of a large knife, squeeze the cloves out of their skins and into a small bowl; mash with a fork, and set aside. Discard the papery skins.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to a 1/8-inch-thick circle, about 12 inches in diameter. With a dry pastry brush, brush off the excess flour; roll the dough around the rolling pin, and lift it over a 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Line the pan with the dough, pressing it into the corners. Trim the dough so that it is flush with the edges; transfer to the refrigerator to chill, about 30 minutes.
• Spread roasted garlic evenly on the chilled crust. Sprinkle with half of the cheese. Arrange the tomatoes on top of the cheese, in an overlapping circular pattern. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with remaining cheese, and drizzle with remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Transfer to oven. Reduce temperature to 400 degrees. and bake until crust is golden and tomatoes are soft but still retain their shape, 45 to 55 minutes. Transfer to wire rack to cool for 20 minutes, and serve warm.

PATE BRISEE FOR ROASTED-PEPPER SAFFRON TART

Steps:

• In a food processor, pulse flour, salt, and sugar to combine. Add the butter, and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds.
• With the machine running, add ice water through the feed tube in a slow, steady stream, until dough just holds together, about 30 seconds.
• Turn out dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Divide in half; place each on plastic wrap. Flatten into disks; wrap well. Chill at least 1 hour or overnight.