Artazza - Roasted Grape Tart

ROASTED GRAPE TART

Recipe by Ashley E. Rodriguez

RECIPES & TIPS

Roasted Grape Tart

Recipe prepared by Ashley E. Rodriguez

Introduction

My passion for all things baked is most apparent when I make puff pastry. I actually get giddy at the sight of the lovely layers of luscious fat that make up this magical dough. Whenever I make puff I parade it around to anyone nearby as if I am 8 again bringing in my most prized possession for show and tell. There is nothing more beautiful then seeing layers of butter and anticipating how utterly delicious it is going to be.

Making classic puff pastry may seem a bit daunting, but it can be done (here's a quick visual demonstration of the process). It does require some forethought as there are long periods of resting time. I don't know about you but my reality is that I barely have time to think about tomorrow. You can imagine my excitement when I found this recipe for quick puff pastry. The results were stellar, the process was simple and it's done in a couple of hours.

I marvel at how the simple ingredients, when manipulated by knowledgeable hands, can be transformed into the most indulgent pastry. And the versatility! There are thousands of uses for puff pastry. Having the power to turn the simple into spectacular and the everyday into extraordinary. Savory or sweet, puff pastry is perfect. Even the most common meals can be given a delicious make-over. Having meatloaf for dinner again? Wrap in puff pastry and your family will cry tears of joy. Need a quick hors d'oeuvres idea for a fancy dinner party? Have puff pastry? Then you're set. All you need is dried cranberries and a chunk of triple creme cheese. Wrap that bundle up in puff, bake and serve with crackers or bread. Instant fancy party food.

While those ideas are great - and I do highly recommend them - I think this recipe trumps them all in simplicity and taste. This roasted grape tart is so quick to throw together. Each bite is like heaven in the mouth with the angels singing a song of admiration to the tart. The grapes are tossed in sugar, placed on puff then baked. While in the oven their flavors concentrate and the sugars caramelize resulting in a perfectly balanced sweet and tart end to a fantastic holiday meal.

I can guarantee that this attractive tart will be showing up numerous times over the holiday season, sure to create a chorus of ooohs and ahhs from it's lucky recipients. Enjoy with a glass of chilled, medium-dry Riesling such as the Zilliken Butterfly Riesling '05.

Roasted Grape Tart

Quick Puff:

adapted from epicurious.com

4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
6 1/2 sticks (3 1/4 cups) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes, chilled
1 cup cold water

Sift together the flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment. (You can also do this by hand, which I rather enjoy).
Add chilled, diced butter and pulse three to five times, until the butter pieces are about the size of lima beans. Add water to the mixture and pulse again about three times. Invert the crumbly mass onto a lightly floured work surface.
Using a rolling pin and bench scraper, shape the mass into a long rectangle. Use the bench scraper and carefully flip one third of the rectangle toward the center. Then, flip the other end to the center, like folding a business letter. Rotate the dough 90 degrees.
Reshape and roll the dough into a rectangle. Repeat the folding and rotating process three more times for a total of four turns. If the dough becomes soft or sticky during this process, immediately refrigerate until firm.
After four turns, wrap the dough in plastic wrap. With your finger, make four indentations in the dough — one for each time the dough has been turned. This is a reference point for how many times the dough has been turned. Refrigerate the dough at least 45 minutes or until firm.
After the dough has been refrigerated for 45 minutes, unwrap it and discard the plastic. Keep your work surface and rolling pin well floured. Press down on each of the four sides of dough to seal its shape.
Start with the rolling pin at the center. Roll away from you. Return to the center and roll toward you. Repeat the folding and rotating process of the dough two more times for a total a total of six times.
After the sixth turn, wrap the finished dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate to make sure it is well-chilled before baking. Quick Puff Pastry keeps refrigerated up to three days or frozen for several months.

Roasted Grape Tart:

adapted from marthastewart.com

All-purpose flour, for work surface
1 recipe quick puff pastry
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
2 cups red and green seedless grapes (about 3/4 pound)
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon orange zest
1/4 teaspoon salt
Granulated sugar for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 415 degrees. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out pastry 1/4 inch thick. Cut into squares, rectangles, diamonds, circles or any shape you prefer. Transfer to a baking sheet. Using the tip of a paring knife, score a 1/2-inch border around edges of squares, being careful not to cut all the way through pastry. Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes.
Whisk together egg and egg yolk; set egg wash aside. Toss together grapes, granulated sugar, zest and salt in a medium bowl. Divide grape mixture among tart shells, keeping it inside the borders. Brush edges of tarts with egg wash, and sprinkle with granulated sugar. Bake until pastry is crisp and golden and grapes are just beginning to collapse, 25 to 30 minutes. Do not open the oven door for at least 15 minutes. Resist the urge! Let cool on sheet on a wire rack.
Serve with whipped crème fraîche (1 cup heavy whipping cream, 1/2 cup cream fraiche, 1 teaspoon vanilla).

About Ashley E. Rodriguez

Food became my life while living in Italy. Growing up I was fortunate to have been brought up around a mother who intuitively knew how to cook, and just by being around that, it rubbed off on me. But it was in Italy where I truly began to appreciate the power of good food.

For me food is so much more than following a recipe in order to reach a desired product. As much as I enjoy that tasty product and the process in which it was created, my personal infatuation with food focuses on the aspects that go beyond satisfying a bodily hunger. I am completely and utterly obsessed with food because of its effect on the people who consume it, grow it, produce it, enjoy it, and live for it. Food is culture, it nourishes our bodies, it is passion, it is hard work, and for many it is their livelihood.

My culinary career has been primarily pastry focused. I worked under the Captain of the winning American Coupe du Monde team (the Olympics of bread baking) at the Essential Bread Baking Company in Seattle, WA. From there I went on to Los Angeles where I studied under Sherry Yard (Executive Pastry Chef for Wolfgang Puck's restaurant empire) at Wolfgang Puck's famous Spago restaurant in Beverly Hills. While working with Sherry, I also assisted her with her second book, Desserts By The Yard.

I moved back to Washington State and began my pastry business, fulfilling all sweet needs. You can see my work in numerous publications including Seattle Metropolitan Bride & Groom. Currently I am focusing on training my two young boys to have distinguished palates. You can also find me writing, teaching and creating a television program on the subject of real, good food.

Photographs copyright by Gabriel Rodriguez. Used with permission.