The Eagles ~ Saturday Night
Bobby McFerrin ~ Circlesong 7
Airbourne ~ Cheap Wine & Cheaper Women
Blur ~ Song 2
Amy Grant ~ Every Road
Sting ~ Mad About You
Chopin: Nocturne #1 in B Blat Minor
Slash ft Rocco ~ Saint Is A Sinner Too
Jim Reeves ~ Distant Drums
Sarah McLachlan ~ Dirty Little Secret (Live)
Ocean Colour Scene ~ The Circle
Maroon 5 ~ Fortune Teller
Train ~ 50 Ways To Say Goodbye
Melissa Etheridge ~ Yes I Am
Welcome and Happy New Year folks...I hope your celebrations were lacking in drama but abundant with fun and laughter...mine was..despite a nasty fall. Cheeky!..it was before alcohol was had...but that did help with the pain later..lol.
So...if you celebrated the recent holidays...what did you make for your main course? Nut roast? En Croute? Tofurky? lol. Well this year I wanted something a little different from the first two...and I never eat the latter. And I found a great recipe online...it was a tart and the filling was relatively simple to make and packed full of good ingredients. It was also a little old school...like a homage to the old days. I was a little exasperated to find that the recipe was by Anon..again. But after some searching I found it was originally the recipe of Dreena Burton...so thank you Dreena. Phew...I always prefer to give the credit where it's due.
The pastry recipe I used was the old faithful...4oz wholemeal flour and 2oz vegan butter and a little cold water. This made the perfect amount for the tart base. Blind baked in the oven for 10-15 minutes at 350'F/180'C/GM 4. And as I rarely eat pastry these days I thought it was the time for a treat...so I made it with no guilt. lol
It's true that the filling does take a little work but it's enjoyable work. On a personal level I would use chopped frozen spinach next time as I found, even though I had chopped it myself, the frozen leaves a little stringy which was a shame. And as you coat the top of the tart and the pastry shell with a tamari/oil mix the pastry goes very brown, very quickly...and I admit I freaked out a little as I thought it had burnt. But that being said I would I cover the tart with tin foil for the first 20 minutes of baking and then uncover for the final 20 minutes.
I've enjoyed this Tart hot and cold...with roasties and with simple steamed veggies on the side. Both have been enjoyable and a slice with a great salad would be perfect too. For me this tart really worked and provided everything I was hoping for in my main course. Intensely savoury..filled with fresh herbs, chickpeas and walnuts...what is there not to love? lol.
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| Holiday Tart with festive stars... |
Dreena's Holiday Tart Serves 8
(Recipe from Dreena Burton)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 cup onion, diced
3/4 cup celery, diced
5 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1 14oz can chickpeas, rinsed and 1/4 cup reserved
3/4 cup walnuts
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tsp tamari
1 1/4 cups of frozen spinach
3 1/2 tbsp dried cranberries
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
1 9" prepared wholewheat pie shell
1/2 tbsp olive oil for brushing
1 tsp tamari for brushing
2 tbsp walnuts, chopped for garnish
1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped for garnish
Pre-heat oven to 400'F/200'C/GM 6.
In a skillet over a medium heat, heat oil. Add onion, celery, garlic, salt and pepper, and cook for 1o minutes until onions soften and begin to caramelise. Set aside.
In a food processor, add chickpeas (except 1/4 reserved cup), walnuts, lemon juice and tamari, and pulse to lightly chop (do NOT puree). Remove half of the chopped mixture from processor and transfer to a large bowl.
Transfer sauteed onions to remaining mixture in the processor. Puree until smooth, scrapping down sides of bowl as needed. Transfer puree to bowl with lightly chopped chickpea and walnut mixture. Add spinach, cranberries, parsley, thyme and reserved chickpeas. Stir to combine and transfer to prepared pie shell, spreading evenly.
Combine oil and tamari and brush on top of pie and crust. Sprinkle with walnuts. Bake for 33 - 38 minutes until lightly browned (HA!). Garnish with parsley and serve.
Enjoy!
Thanks for stopping by and I hope that your Thursday has been incredible...
~Red~
NB: This recipe is not my creation and therefore I take no credit for it whatsoever. It is the hard work and creative talent of Dreena Burton and I thank her for it. ~R~
