Rustic Spinach Tart with Siglino & Goat Cheese
from our friends at www.Cookouvagia.com
…tarts open the door to a world of endless possibilities.
There are sweet and savory tarts, tarts with vegetables,
with cheese custard or even meat fillings!
The tart base varies depending on the texture we want to achieve. We can use puff pastry, pate brisee, pate sucree etc. Siglino can ideally replace bacon in any of your cooking ideas.. We first tried this recipe at a party we had a while back and it was a big success!
After raving reviews from our party guests, it has now been added to our recipe book. In our recipe we use fresh creamy goat cheese and kefalotiri cheese, but you could always substitute for feta cheese, parmesan or even pecorino.
The characteristic taste of this rustic spinach tart comes from siglino. Siglino is a kind of smoked ham that originates from Mani, which is located in the Peloponnese.
Siglino gets its unique taste from the way it is smoked with herbs and later preserved in pork fat.
As a base for the tart, we use spinach and as a binding agent we use a creamy mixture that unites everything together. This creamy mixture is seasoned with fresh nutmeg, that pairs wonderfully with spinach and smoked deli meats. What is great about this recipe is that with a salad as a side-dish, this rustic spinach tart makes for a delicious lunch to take to work.
A bonus is that kids love it too and can have a couple of pieces as a healthy snack at school!
RUSTIC SPINACH TART WITH SIGLINO & GOAT CHEESE
Total Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients:
For the dough
8 ounces all-purpose flour (plus more for dusting), sifted
8 ounces high quality unsalted cold butter, cut into small cubes
1/4 cup cold water
1 tsp caster sugar
1 tsp salt
1 egg white, beaten
For the filling
7 ounces fresh spinach leaves, rinsed
2 small fresh scallions, thinly sliced
2 ounces “siglino” smoked pork, finely chopped
2.5 ounces fresh creamy goat cheese
4 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
Salt
Pepper
For the cream mixture
1 cup full-fat milk cream
1 3/4 ounces ground kefalotiri cheese (or parmesan, pecorino cheese etc.)
2 egg yolks
A pinch of ground nutmeg
Pepper
Instructions:
For the dough
Add the flour, sugar and salt in a bowl.
Stir well with a spoon and add the cold cubes of butter.
Toss carefully with your fingers and try to “break” most of the cubes of butter into smaller ones.
Pour in the cold water and quickly knead, until you just have a somewhat sticky ball of dough.
Cover the dough with cling film and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
Remove the dough from the fridge and roll it out on a floured surface.
Line a deep 10 to 12 inch tart pan with the dough.
Use a small knife and trim the edges of the dough a little bit, but still let them overhang.
Using a fork, poke tiny holes on the bottom and the sides of the dough.
Refrigerate again for 15 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit/fan mode.
Remove the tart pan from the fridge and cut a 11 inch. round piece of baking parchment.
Line your tart pan with that and spread beans, rice, lentils or chickpeas on it.
Their weight will prevent the dough from rising during baking in the oven.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, until the tart base is lightly brown.
Remove the tart pan from the oven.
Carefully remove the baking parchment along with the beans, rice, lentils or chickpeas.
Return the tart pan in the oven and bake for further 5 minutes, so as the tart base is also cooked and nicely browned.
Remove the tart pan from the oven and immediately spread with a brush a VERY thin layer of beaten egg white on the tart base (this will prevent the moisture of the filling seeping through to the flaky tart base).
Leave it to cool slowly at room temperature.
For the filling
Place a frying pan on high heat until smoking hot.
Add the olive oil and the fresh spinach leaves.
Sprinkle salt and cook spinach until wilted down, but do not overcook!
Remove the pan from the heat and transfer the spinach to a sieve, so as it strains from the excess liquid.
Place the frying pan again on medium heat.
Add a splash of olive oil, the fresh scallions and the siglino.
Stir fry for 4-5 minutes, until the scallion is translucent and the siglino is lightly brown.
Remove the pan from the heat and transfer this mixture to a plate.
When all the ingredients reach at room temperature, then toss them together and keep them aside.
For the cream mixture
Add all the ingredients in a jug and carefully whisk them until well combined.
How to assemble
Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees Fahrenheit/fan mode.
When the tart base has reached room temperature, prepare to build up this fabulous tart!
Spread the spinach mixture all over the bottom of the cooked tart.
Add the fresh creamy goat cheese in small “balls”, rather than spreading it.
Pour the cream mixture and cover all the ingredients.
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until set.
Remove the tart pan from the oven and leave it again to cool slowly at room temperature on a wire rack.
Carefully trim the overhanging dough edges and serve.
Enjoy!
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