There is nothing more exciting than finding a use for edible flowers and fresh leafy greens from my garden. I love the colour pops, the flavours, and the little elements of joy they bring to the simplest of dishes. This Stone Fruit and Goat Cheese Tart is an easy appetizer or tapas option that has had rave reviews from my clients and it is chock full of happy vegetation.
Tarts are a lovely quick solution to layer flavour using endless combinations. This sweet and savoury blend is like taking a bite out of summer. It really is. Serve it with a refreshing Riesling on a sunny day for maximum satisfaction.
The ingredients for this tart are very simple and very fresh. You can find them in your local market or, if you are growing your own herbs and edible flowers, then look into your own back yard to pluck your favourite blossoms.
1 Puff Pastry Tart Shell
1 tsp of Olive Oil
2 Peaches. Peeled, pits removed, and sliced. (See in notes for instructions on how to do this.)
4 Tbsp of soft Goats Cheese
1 Tbsp of drained pickled shallots
1 cup of mixed spring greens
1/2 cup of mixed edible flowers (nasturtiums, borage, pansies, marigolds)
Good quality olive oil for drizzle
Maldon Salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste.
Instructions
The first thing you want to do here is gather your ingredients and preheat your oven (400°) and grill (Medium High). This tart comes together quickly and you are using your grill and your oven so being organized will make this simple assembly a breeze.
Spray your grill with some non stick spray. Carefully place the peach slices on the grill plate so they do not fall between the slates. Grill them for about 2 – 3 Minutes a side. They should have a nice char mark and begin to soften. Once grilled, set aside.
Remove your Tart shell from the package and roll out on a parchment lined rimmed baking sheet. It should be a nice square. Using a sharp tipped knife, score the the edge of the tart to make a crust. Give yourself 1/2 an inch for the crust, and draw a straight line on each side cutting just halfway through the dough. This will form a square inside the square edge. You don’t want to cut it all the way for what your doing is giving the crust the ability to form. It will puff up in the area you’re tracing creating an edge much like a pizza crust.
Using a fork, prick the dough randomly inside the square you just drew. 4 or five times should do the trick. This prevents the puff pastry dough from puffing up under your filling.
Using a pastry brush, brush some olive oil over the dough centre and then scatter a pinch of Maldon salt over top.
Assemble the pastry by laying out the peaches evenly over the tart centre going right up to your cut lines. Dollop the goats cheese randomly around the peaches. Sprinkle the (drained) pickled shallots on top of the goats cheese and peach assembly.
Bake the tart in the oven for 20 – 25 minutes until the edges are golden brown and have risen nicely. The centre should have risen slightly too around the peaches and goats cheese.
Remove the tart from the oven and now scatter your greens and edible flowers over top. Grind a nice cracked pepper over the tart, a sprinkle of Maldon salt, and a drizzle of olive oil. Cut into four servings and serve.
Notes
To remove the skin off of peaches, bring some water to a boil in a medium sauce pan. Place a separate bowl of cool ice water to the side. Score an X on the bottom of each peach. (the non stem end) and place into the boiling water. Boil for about 1 minute, maybe 2 max depending on ripeness of peaches. If the skin begins to lift, remove right away. Place the peaches into the cold ice bath to stop them from cooking. Now, you can slide the skin right off of the peach no problem.
The peaches will be slippery now, so to slice them, I take my knife and cut slices like you would cut slices of an apple. You then give the knife a little twist in the cut lines and the peach slice should pull away from the pit. Do that all the way around the pit. Discard the pit after.
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