Pumpkin and Pecan Tarts

I admit, I have become addicted to the Times on Line recipes. I must go though their pages at least 3 times a week!!!
Although I get quite a few recipes sent to me, i try to choose the most original and the Times on Line has an amazing selection of great recipes.

These Pumkin and Pecan Tarts are a cross between an American pumpkin pie and those fabulous Portuguese custard tarts, pasteis de nata.  They are super delicious and with haloween coming up, I am sure one can find a pumpkin or two to use!

Ingredients
500g all-butter puff pastry (recipe here)

100g butter
800g pumpkin or squash, cut into ½cm cubes
100g pecan halves, broken into bits, plus 12 extra halves

250g sugar
1 egg
100ml double cream
2 tsp plain flour
1 heaped tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp ground clove
About 1/4 of a nutmeg, grated
Zest of 1 orange
Icing sugar

Method
On a floured surface, roll out the pastry until it’s about 2mm thick. Cut 12 circles large enough to line the holes of a 12-hole nonstick muffin tin, leaving about 1cm standing out of the rim; my muffin tray has holes of about 7cm wide and 2cm deep, so the circles of dough are about 12cm across (you may not need all the pastry). Put in the fridge while you deal with the pumpkin.

Heat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6. In a large frying pan, melt the butter, then add the pumpkin cubes and cook over a medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring often, until the pumpkin is soft. Add the 100g of pecans and cook for 1 minute, then stir in the sugar and cook for a minute more, until the whole thing is brown and bubbling. Leave to cool for 10 minutes.

Beat together the egg, cream, flour, spices and orange zest until thoroughly mixed. Stir together with the pumpkin and pecan mixture, then carefully spoon into the chilled shells so they are about three-quarters full — you may not need all of the mixture. Put a pecan half on top of each and bake in the oven for 25 minutes. The tops will bubble and rise, but will sink back as they cool.

Allow to cool until just warm or room temperature, sprinkling the tops lightly with icing sugar before you eat — with whipped cream, ideally.

Beetroot Tart

I never claim that any recipes are my original creation (how can any recipe be??!!) I generally recieve them from friends but I found this great Tart  on line.

This is a sweet-savoury tart. It looks good with purple beetroot, but even better if you alternate with golden beetroot. Thanks to info from Sarah Raven on Times online (UK)http://sarahraven.com/Serves 8 Makes 1 x 29cm tart



Ingredients
4 medium-sized beetroot (2 red, 2 golden, if possible)
2 large onions
Few sprigs of whole thyme
30g butter
splash of olive oil
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp sugar
2 eggs
150ml double cream
3 or 4 sprigs of thyme
A little grated nutmeg
Salt and pepper

For the pastry
200g plain flour
100g butter
Few sprigs of thyme, finely chopped
Flaky salt

For the horseradish cream
Grated horseradish
Double cream or crème fraîche
A little mustard powder
Lemon juice, to taste
Pinch of white pepper ,Salt

Method
Pastry:
Sift the flour with the thyme and salt and work in the butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.( you can use a food processor and pulse the mixture) Add just enough cold water for it to bind together as a dough. Roll out and line a 29cm flan dish. Put in the fridge for at least an hour.
Preheat the oven to 180C/gas 4.
Prick the base of the pastry case with a fork. Bake blind for 20 min.

Filling:
Boil the beetroot in salted water until soft. Cool and peel. Then grate (keeping the two colours separate if you have them), on the coarse blade of a grater.

Finely chop and then gently fry the onions in a pan with butter (with a splash of olive oil) until the onions are translucent. Add the grated beetroot and thyme (if you have two colours, divide the onions and continue to cook in two separate pans). Add the balsamic vinegar and sugar and cook gently for about 15 min to reduce and become syrupy.

Fill the pastry case with the beetroot mixture using different colours in segments. Mix the eggs, cream and nutmeg. Season and pour as much of this mixture as you can easily fit over the beetroot, scattering more thyme leaves over the top. Cook for 35 min until the top is brown.

While the tart is in the oven, make the horseradish cream.

Peel and grate the horseradish. If you want it very strong, grate it when you are ready to eat. It has highly volatile essential oils and so its strength will quickly fade — which is why you never want to cook it. It also discolours quickly, so mix it with the other ingredients immediately.

Add enough double cream (or crème fraîche) for a creamy consistency. Add a little mustard powder, white pepper and salt, and add lemon juice to taste. Serve with the tart.

Zucchini Carpaccio

Carpaccio generally means very thinly cut, raw meat or fish. In the past decade, it has, however, been used to define any thinly cut, raw edible! Maybe the Italian word gives food a certain cachet!!

This is a very simple recipe - and quick to make.


Serves 2
4 zucchini
2 tbs olive oil
2 tsp lemon juice
1 clove garlic, crushed
Fresh chives, chopped
1 tsp fresh parsley, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

Cut the zucchini lengthwise - best will be using a potato peeler. Place the slices in a dish, sprinkle the herbs, garlic, olive oil and lemon juice. Leave for a couple of hours then eat!