Leek and Asparagus Tart

I saw a recipe in the BBC Good Food newsletter for a Purple Sprouting Broccoli, Leek and Almond Tart and wanted to try it. I didn’t have any broccoli, so I substituted asparagus, and it was so good I made it again the following week. The leeks and asparagus made such a great flavor combination that broccoli is out the window now. As you can see in the pic, the pastry got a tad overdone, but it was still yumptious. You can find the original BBC recipe here:
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/335627/purple-sprouting-broccoli-leek-and-almond-tart

I served this tart with Mediterranean potatoes, which you can find here:
http://range-warfare.blogspot.com/2009/05/mediterranean-potatoes.html
and the remaining asparagus, which I roasted and served with a drizzle of lemon juice and a dash of Parmesan.

Leek and Asparagus Tart

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 leeks (white and pale green parts only) thinly sliced
1 sheet puff pastry
10-12 asparagus spears, trimmed
2 eggs
2/3 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup Parmesan, shredded
1 ounce sliced almonds

Directions:

• Pre-heat oven to 425F
• Heat the oil in a skillet over a medium heat, add leeks and a generous dash of black pepper and sauté for about 5 minutes. Set aside while you prepare pastry.
• Cover a baking tray with baking parchment and grease with a little butter.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll the pastry into a rectangle. Place pastry on baking tray, and score a line about ½ an inch from the edge around the pastry sheet. Don’t cut right through the pastry.
• Spread the leeks out evenly within the scored rectangle, and bake for 10 minutes until the edges have puffed up.
• Reduce oven temperature to 400F
• Arrange the asparagus spears on top of the leeks, and sprinkle with Parmesan.
• In a small bowl, beat together eggs and cream and pour over the veggies.
• Sprinkle with the sliced almonds and bake for 20 – 25 minutes, or until golden brown.
• Allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Cod Mornay

I know I am always bemoaning the fact that we can’t get any decent fresh fish here in Oklahoma, and that’s still true. But since I started going to Sam’s Club (a discount warehouse store), in Joplin, Missouri, I have at least been able to find some pretty good frozen fish. I do like to have meat free meals, be it something fishy, eggy or veggie, once or twice a week. This is one of my fishy dishes.

Even if you’re not a huge lover of fish, I guarantee you’ll like this one. I served this with some baby red potatoes for soaking up all that yummy sauce, and some roasted asparagus, which after cooking, I sprinkled with a little lemon juice and Parmesan cheese.

Cod Mornay


Ingredients:

3 – 4 cod fillets, or other white fish such as sea bass or halibut
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon lemon juice
¼ cup sharp cheddar, shredded
Chopped parsley for garnish

For the Sauce you will need:

1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
¼ cup sharp cheddar, shredded

Directions:

• Make sauce. Melt butter in a medium saucepan over a medium heat. Remove pan from heat and gradually stir in flour to make a smooth paste.
• Return pan to heat and gradually add milk, stirring continuously until sauce thickens.
  Remove pan from heat and stir in cheese until melted. Set aside.
• Pre-heat oven to 350F
• Melt butter in a large skillet over a medium heat, add fish to pan, sprinkle with a little lemon juice, and cook for 3-5 minutes depending on the thickness of the fillets. Turn fish over half way through cooking.
• While fish cooks, gently re-heat sauce.
• Grease a baking dish with a little butter. Transfer fish to dish, pour over the sauce, and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until fish flakes easily.
• Top with chopped parsley and serve.