Honey Rhubarb Fool with Cardamom Chèvre Cream

“New school, new baby pool!” Or rather, new city, new so many tons of things to be doing all of the time, including my brand new intense job, that this will be a quick blog post. When I posted last, I was courting a production baking job in Portland, Maine, and lazing away the start of summer with my folks in their dreamy log cabin up north. All of the sudden, I found myself instead with the pastry opportunity of a lifetime in Baltimore, and I’m here now (!!), working away as a pastry assistant at Woodberry Kitchen. Check ‘er out, dudes. It’s an amazing restaurant, business model, idea, influence, etc., that supports farms all over the Chesapeake Watershed by putting their produce to exclusive, consistent use. Farm-to-table in the sense of it being for the benefit of farmers, more than for the delight of eaters, but delight we do, and it sure is a ton of work. 

On one of my precious days off last week, I hopped down to DC to retrieve all of my things, and whipped up this rhubarb dessert in compensation for my trespassing unannounced in the house of my sister and buddies. It’s an April Bloomfield recipe that I’ve had my eye on for awhile, and in the spate of 90-degree heat, it seemed a lot more appealing than a rhubarb Bundt cake, both to make and to eat. It ended up being finished just in time for a sparkling wine–fueled round of porch Carcassonne and visits from the dearest friends, and I’m so thankful to be back home. So please come visit in Baltimore, and eat at Woodberry Kitchen! I’ll be the gal in the back covered in flour and rhubarb splatters.

Honey Rhubarb Fool with Cardamom Chèvre Cream and Pistachios

Adapted significantly from April Bloomfield, via Lottie + Doof and the LA Times

Here, I used honey in place of sugar, omitted rosewater, reduced the cardamom, and used goat cheese instead of creme fraiche in the cream. The original recipe calls for the addition of one to two teaspoons  rosewater to the rhubarb. I think that sounds good, but I wanted to round it out with honey for a nice base to the chèvre instead. If rosewater is your thing, add it to the rhubarb once it’s finished cooling, a 1/2 teaspoon at a time, until you reach a flavor strength that you’re down with. And to see the original recipe, check out Bloomfield’s book, or pop on over to L + D or the LA Times.

Rhubarb

1 1/4 pounds of rhubarb, topped and tailed, then sliced into 3/4-inch pieces

3 tablespoons mild honey

1 tablespoon superfine sugar

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

1.  Toss the rhubarb and sugar in a medium pot. Add the white wine. Use a knife to scrape the seeds from the vanilla pod into the pot, and toss the pod into the pot too. Place the pot over medium-low heat and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the rhubarb is very tender but still more or less intact, about 10 minutes—keep a careful eye on it as a totally stringy pulp is not what you’re going for here. Set aside to cool.

Cardamom Chèvre Cream

5 green cardamom pods

3 tablespoons confectioners sugar

4 ounces mild, fresh chèvre

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

Handful of roasted, salted pistachios, for garnish

1.  Smash the cardamom pods, discard the husks and pound the seeds in a mortar and pestle or grind in a spice grinder until finely ground. If using a mortar and pestle, grind the sugar into the spices toward the end.

2.  Combine the goat cheese, heavy cream, cardamom, and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Chill until ready to assemble. When ready to assemble, whisk the mixture to soft peaks—about two minutes.

3.  To assemble: Use four 8-ounce glasses, or a large glass bowl (so as to see the layers, counsels Tim Mazurek!). Layer the rhubarb and whipped cream and top with chopped roasted and salted pistachios. Cover the fools and let them chill in the fridge for an hour or so before serving. They will keep for longer, but really are best served about an hour into chilling.

Red Potato Tart with Shallots, Kale, Mustard, and Goat Tomme

We’re awash in sugar ‘round these parts. Last week started with blackberry cobbler with “dip,” ended with maple bourbon goat milk waffles, and dropped us smack dab at yesterday’s door with a coffee-nutella-s’more pie. Dave recently balked on our banana-bread-off (after he tasted mine, might I add: scared stiff of the competition!), but I’m relieved not to have as much sweet stuff floating around the house; it’s time to come up for some salty air. And lo’ and behold: I live on a cheese farm. This is the perfect place to regenerate a salt tooth.

A month or two before I arrived, Arlene worked up a few wheels of goat tomme with vegetable ash running through their centers. We cut into them about two weeks ago, and while she of course had her critiques, I was totally smitten. The tomme tastes like a clean asiago, and it’s ended up being a dang-near perfect savory baking cheese—salty, nutty, the right sort of contrast to fruit and vegetables. And as much as I would love for you to come up to Maine and buy some in person, don’t let the travel distance stop you from making this tart! Swap in some asiago, parmesan, or any good hard cheese, and you’ll be rolling some savory bliss—a nice change of pace ‘round these parts.

Red Potato Tart with Shallots, Kale, Mustard, and Goat Tomme

For the Crust
Adapted from Apt. 2B Baking Co. and I Made That!

Makes enough for two, but you’ll only need one for this recipe. Feel free to substitute in your favorite crust recipe instead! Click here for photo tutorial.

12 ounces pastry flour
1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
8 ounces (two sticks) very cold butter
4 to 6 ounces ice water
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1.  On a clean counter, dump your flour and salt; mix it around with a bench scraper. Chop one stick of butter into quarters, and cut it into the four with your bench scraper. When butter is about the size of lima beans, cut in the second stick, pulling, folding, and tossing with the bench scraper as you go, until the butter is about the size of quarters. Add the vinegar to the ice water.

2. Using your fingers, flick the water onto the butter-flour mixture, gently folding with the bench scraper all the while. You have added enough water once the mixture holds together when squeezed; it should be very shaggy.

3. Next, push the butter into the flour. Using the heel of your palm, push a small section of the dough down and away from you; this creates long layers of butter in your dough, which translates to long flaky layers in your crust. Use your bench scraper to scrape up the smear, and put it a bowl. Repeat until all the dough has been smeared and you have a bowlful of long, buttery layers. Push these into one mass, divide in half, wrap each in plastic, flatten into disks, and chill at least two hours, or better yet overnight.

For the Filling

Adapted significantly from Smitten Kitchen

I added shallots, kale, dijon, and a salt quantity to this. Also used a different crust, cut back the cream, and kept the egg white instead of using just the yolk. See here for her version with blue cheese.

One-half recipe savory pie or tart crust
3/4 pound small red potatoes
1/3 cup shredded cheese (we used farm-made goat tomme, but consider gouda, gruyere, asiago, havarti)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 medium shallot, sliced into thin rings
3 to 4 large leaves of kale, ribs removed, and leaves cut into ribbons
1 tablespoon dijon or other fine mustard
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 medium or large egg
1/2 teaspoon Diamond kosher salt (see here for salt tutorial to compensate if using other brand)
Cracked black pepper
Parsley for garnish, optional

1.  Roll out your dough to a ten-inch circle and fit it into an 8-inch tart pan. Prick all over with a fork, and place it in the freezer while you ready everything else. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with foil and set aside.

2.  Slice the potatoes into quarter-inch slices. Put into medium saucepan, cover with an inch or two of water, bring to a simmer, and cook for about ten minutes, until tender. Drain, and pat dry with a paper towel.

3. In a medium sautee pan, heat olive oil over medium until hot. Add shallots, and cook until wilted and starting to color, about five minutes. Add kale ribbons, and cook until bright green, two to three minutes. Remove from heat and set aside. Next, spread your mustard across the bottom of your frozen tart dough; use more if you wish, but a thin layer should do the trick. Whisk together the cream, egg, and salt, and set aside.
4.  Starting out the outside of your tart, overlap potato slices into one ring. Use a bit more than half of your kale ribbons and shallots to line the inner edge of your potato ring. Make your next circle of potatoes. Line that one with kale ribbons, and make your final third circle the middle. Use leftover potatoes to go back and fill in places where the potato circles might be thin. Top with your cheese and any remaining shallots. Slowly pour the cream and egg mixture across the top, allowing it to sink down into the spaces between potatoes. Crack some black pepper over the top, and bake on cookie sheet for 45 minutes to an hour, or until the cheese and crust are golden, and the filling is bubbling. Remove to a cooling rack for ten to 15 minutes, remove outer tart pan ring, top with a few torn parsley leaves if desired, and serve while still warm.

Tomatoes for a side salad with the goat tomme front and center-ish.

Salted Ginger Caramel Goat Cheese Tart

Just a few short months ago, I was flipping goat cheese wrappers inside out and scraping out the corners with a tiny spoon to release all the smears for this cheese-heavy tart. Not wanting to spend one cent more to ensure enough usable quarter-ounces of cheese, I worked those wrappers for all that they were worth. Now I find myself in the complete opposite set of circumstances, those being that fresh, neverending goat cheese is the most readily available ingredient around; I still scrape out the bowls with a tiny spoon, but now with much less desperation and a lot more pride.

The inspiration for this tart came just in time too. My stint at the goat cheese farm is just two weeks old, but my role  is feeling more settled, routines are natural, and free time more predictable. Based on how the farm sells at market and how much milk we're getting from the girls, certain afternoons and evenings are now far less burdensome than they were just ten days previous, which means I have time to bake! A few days ago, on one of the most sweltering afternoons thus far, Arlene, Dave, and I riproared early through our chores and cheeses. The dough for this tart was already assembled and the chevre already made (by me!) and set aside, so I threw together and baked the filling before we high-tailed it for nearby Schoodic Lake, with beers, sandwiches, and pooch in tow. For a few blissful hours, we dove off tall rocks, exhausted ourselves swimming out as far as we could and back, and swapped stories about weird dates and weird parents. Only one slimy lake creature was spotted, and no one came home with a brain amoeba: success!

And when we got home sun-soaked and somewhat buzzed to finish evening chores, I managed to sneak away to finish the salted ginger caramel and top this tart before dinner. Supper perpetuated our lovely, easy day, as farm-fresh organic everything--all-beef hotdogs, burgers, cherry tomato cobbler baked with cheese that we made, kale chips, and potato salad--was amassed upon the table and gobbled up without hesitation. There might not be too many opportunities for me to make the cheese that makes a tart and then eat it surrounded by new friends and folks with hilarious stories, so I plan to take advantage of it as many times as I can over the next five months. On that note, do you have any must-make goat cheese baked goods recipes, sweet or savory? I'd love to know and make them!

Ginger Caramel Goat Cheese Tart

Inspired by Nothing in the House's Blackberry Lemon Goat Cheese Tart

Makes enough for one nine-inch tart

Crust and Filling

One-half recipe all-butter flaky pie crust or other pie or tart dough of your choosing

16 ounces soft chevre

4 extra-large eggs

2/3 cup + 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Zest from one small lemon, about two teaspoons worth

Salted Ginger Caramel

1 cup granulated sugar

6 tablespoons salted butter (or unsalted + 1/4 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt), cut into one-inch pieces

1/4 cup heavy cream

2-inch peeled knob of ginger, grated and pressed to yield one tablespoon juice

1.  Parbake pie crust:  preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Roll out pie crust to an 11- or 12-inch circle and fit it into nine-inch tart pan. Fold under edges, pleat, and prick all over with a fork. Fit a sheet of foil against the dough and fill with pie weights or dried beans then bake for ten minutes. Carefully remove the foil, press down any crust bubbles, and bake for five to eight minutes more, until crust is lightly golden. Reduce temperature to 350 once crust is parbaked.

2.  Make the filling:  meanwhile, add chevre, eggs, and sugar to a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium-low until filling is uniformly blended, about three minutes. Add the extract, juice, and zest, scrape down the sides, and mix until filling is smooth. 

3.  Bake:  set parbaked tart shell on a foil-lined cookie sheet. Pour filling into hot tart shell and bake at 350 degrees F for 50 minutes, until filling is set on the edges and slightly soft in the middle; be sure to rotate pan halfway through. Allow to cool on wire rack completely, about two hours. Can store undressed tart in fridge at this point, if not finishing tart the same day.

4.  Make caramel* and assemble:  add sugar for caramel to a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Melt sugar over medium-high heat, whisking gently as needed to ensure even melting. Once sugar is melted, swirl pan every 30 seconds or so until sugar turns a deep copper color. With heat still on, add butter and whisk like mad to melt; mixture will sputter, so be careful. Then, add cream and ginger juice, stirring until caramel is smooth. Remove from heat and let cool in fridge for about one hour. When cool, pour caramel over goat cheese tart, spreading to edges of crust. Cool in fridge to set caramel, one to two hours, or cut it into it straight away like we did and end up with a really delicious mess. If you want, sprinkle a few flecks of flaky sea salt over the top too.

*Do ahead: Caramel can be made days or even a week ahead and stored in the fridge. Just rewarm ever so slightly in the microwave for 15 to 20 seconds before spreading over the tart.

Tourteau de Chevre with Grapefruit Honey Sorbet

I'm packin' it in, y'all. After nearly four years at my job as the senior editor for an awesome and essential civil rights group, and after being in DC for the same most excellent, challenging, and straight-up real period of time, I'm headed up to Maine to learn how to make goat cheese and acquire some serious business skills. I have two months left at my job -- very advanced notice, I know -- before putting myself out to pasture at a 100-acre goat farm in central Maine, a little bit north of Bangor. I'll be there until the end of the season, milking goats, making cheese, doing untold numbers of farm chores, and helping manage a farmers market or two, all in the name of learning about business and putting my food and field chops to the test.

Maybe I'll come back to DC with a little more forward momentum toward starting a business, or maybe I'll stay up there or go somewhere else to continue learning about farming and the like for a second season. I've had thoughts of making the most of some of my work connections to get into screenwriting and deeper into production, I still think about going to library school, and I also dream about doing public engagement work for a museum or arts organization. I also have no idea whether this stint will lead me back, long sigh, to the predictability of my cubicle -- yes, the path is clear for this one. All the same, I am very pumped!

I guess this is a little contrived, but bear with me and pretend it's sorta cute that I'm sharing this tourteau de chevre in honor of my goat cheesy celebration. Joey nailed it when he called this a cross between a cheese cake and an angel food cake. It's lighter than it looks -- a drier cheese cake with a pretty light goat cheese taste all within a sweetened pastry crust. Lottie + Doof served his with grape sorbet, but after Joey and I had a killer goat cheese panna cotta with grapefruit in North Carolina the other day, we had to try it with this grapefruit honey sorbet. The combination might seem like a mismatch, but it's totally delicious. Even so, Bobbie ate this with caramel, Joey topped it with maple syrup, I had it drizzled with honey, and we all agreed that spicy blackberry syrup would have been a nice topper too.

Besides, if your farmers markets are anything like ours right now -- that is to say, barely open -- then you could consider this a great, nonfussy dessert for the transition to spring. It will pair well with whatever fruit you have available, plus it's equally good with wine, beer, or coffee. Joey had it for breakfast too, but that's more a quality of his than a quality of the cake's. I hope you enjoy!

Tourteau de Chevre

Adapted from Lottie + Doof

I had to make this in a 9-inch pan because I couldn't find my 8-inch, so it's not as tall and glorious as Tim's was. The instructions below are for an 8-inch pan, but if yours is missing too, just roll the crust out to about 1.5 inches larger than called for and start checking to see if it's finished between 25 and 30 minutes into the second round of baking.

Tart Dough (see below)
5 large eggs, separated, at room temperature
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
9 ounces soft goat cheese
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Generously butter an 8-inch springform pan.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out into a circle that’s about 10 1/2 inches in diameter. Fit the dough into the springform pan, pressing it against the bottom and about halfway up the sides. Don't worry if dough pleats and folds on itself; do your best to smooth it out and don't worry about being perfect. Put the springform in the fridge while you make the filling.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, whip the egg whites with the salt until they start to form soft peaks. Still whipping, gradually add 2 tablespoons of the sugar, and beat until the whites hold firm, but still glossy peaks. If the whites are in the bowl of your stand mixer, transfer them gently to another bowl.

4. With the mixer—use the paddle attachment now—beat the egg yolks, goat cheese, the remaining 1/2 cup sugar, the cornstarch, and vanilla until very smooth and creamy, about a minute or two. Switch to a rubber spatula and stir one quarter of the whites into the mixture to lighten it, then gently fold in the rest of the whites. Scrape the batter into the crust and put the springform on the lined baking sheet.

5. Bake for 15 minutes, then turn the oven temperature down to 350 degrees F. Continue to bake for about 30 to 35 minutes more, or until the top, which will have cracked, is dark brown and firm; a thin knife inserted into the center of the cake should come out clean. Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and let the tourteau rest for 10 minutes. Carefully remove the sides of the springform. Cool the cake completely to room temperature before serving. It will deflate as it cools. Cake will keep covered in the fridge for about one week. I actually thought it tasted better the second day after a night in the fridge, but I leave that up to you!

Tart Dough
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons very cold unsalted butter, cut into bits
1 large egg
1 teaspoon ice water

1. Put the flour, sugar, and salt in the processor and whir a few times to blend. Scatter the butter over the flour and pulse several times to blend. Then pulse until the butter is coarsely mixed into the flour, with texture ranging from small peas to oatmeal flakes. Beat the egg with the ice water and pour it into the bowl in 3 small additions, whirring after each one. The food process will change its sound a little, grumbling at you and getting deeper. The dough should be moist and malleable, and com together when pinched. Turn the it out onto a work surface, gather into a ball, and flatten dough into a disk.

2. Chill the dough for at least three hours.

Grapefruit Honey Sorbet

Makes about three cups

2 cups fresh-pressed grapefruit juice

1 teaspoon grapefruit zest

1/4 cup cup + 2 tablespoons mild honey, or to taste

1. Whir the juice, zest, and honey in a food processor or blender until all evenly mixed and honey is dissolved, about one minute. Taste for balance; sorbet will taste pretty much how it does as juice. Chill for a few hours until mixture is very cold. Process according to ice cream manufacturer's instructions. Sorbet will keep covered for about a week. After that it gets pretty hard and icy, but won't lose flavor!

Savory Roasted Garlic and Goat Cheeses Tart

Yesterday, I broiled a pie. It was not some ingenious technique to caramelize the sugars, but a percocet-induced blindness to details that reduced my walnut pie to a smoldering mess that tasted like "baked beans and burnt popcorn," according to Joey. Hooray. It really was truly disgusting, and though I blame my altered state --thanks doctors! -- I think that the copious molasses might have had something to do with it as well. I usually love molasses, but this pie recipe called for it in excess of one cup and in addition to brown sugar, which frankly is just way too much sweetness for my palate. I'm still curious to try this pie and its cousins -- shoo-fly! --just not made in my own kitchen on prescribed, heavy narcotics.

Luckily, however, before going under the knife, I helped chef one of DC's numerous underground restaurants and emerged (lucidly) with this roasted garlic tart featuring plentiful herbs and goat cheeses. Other standouts were Eric's roasted fennel-celeriac salad, James's spicy stuffed onions and quinoa, and of course the cocktails invented by the geniuses behind the bar. I baked a couple of espresso-white chocolate-citrus tarts too, but this garlic jam might have been the queen of my contributions. It's pretty much an Ottolenghi recipe, though I swapped in a quiche crust, increased the garlic, and cooked the garlic at a lower heat and for much longer than he did. However! These weren't scientific changes, and no matter what your technique or substitutions, this tart will turn out beautifully and delicious. It must seem a welcome reprieve from the usual parade of sweets on this blog. Maybe my percocet disaster could be considered a sign that I ought to spend more time baking savory goods; butter is good in any light, after all!

Roasted Garlic Tart

Adapted somewhat from Yotam Ottolenghi's Plenty

I didn't tweak this much, but my changes are noted where applicable. Get to it! This tart is too good to ignore.

13 ounces puff pastry, defrosted if frozen, or your favorite quiche crust recipe

3 medium heads of garlic, cloves separated and peeled (not crushed) (I used 4 heads)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar (I upped this to two)
3/4 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme, plus 3 sprigs for garnish
1 teaspoon fine sea salt (orig. calls for 3/4 teaspoon), divided
4 1/2 ounces soft, creamy goat cheese, such as chevre
4 1/2 ounces hard goat cheese, such as goat gouda
2 large eggs
6 1/2 tablespoons heavy cream
6 1/2 tablespoons creme fraiche
Freshly ground black pepper

1. Roll out puff pastry/dough into a 13-inch circle. Fit puff pastry into an 11-inch round fluted pan with a removable bottom. Place a parchment paper round on top of puff pastry or crust; top with pie weights or dried beans. Transfer to refrigerator; chill for 20 minutes.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with foil and set aside. Transfer tart shell to oven and bake for 20 minutes. Remove weights and paper and bake until pastry is golden, 5 to 10 minutes more. Remove from oven and set aside.

3. Place garlic cloves in a small saucepan filled with water. Place saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer; simmer for 3 minutes. Drain and return cloves to saucepan. Add olive oil and place saucepan over high heat; cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic is fried, about 2 minutes. Add vinegar and 1 cup water; bring to a boil and immediately reduce to a simmer. Let simmer for 10 minutes. Add sugar, rosemary, chopped thyme, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Continue simmering over medium heat until most of the liquid has evaporated and garlic is coated in a dark caramelized syrup, about 10 minutes more (I ended up going for more than 15). Remove from heat and set aside.

4. Break both goat cheeses into pieces and scatter in tart shell; spoon garlic cloves and syrup over cheese. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, cream, creme fraiche, and remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt; season with pepper. Pour egg mixture over cheese and garlic filling, making sure the cheese and garlic are still visible.

5. Transfer tart to lined baking sheet then to oven, and bake until tart filling is set and top is golden brown, 35 to 45 minutes (I ended up going for 50). Remove from oven and let cool slightly before removing tart from pan. Garnish with thyme sprigs; tart can be reheated but is best straight from the oven and served warm.