Fig tart - Tarta cu smochine

I have been lazy again when it comes to posting. I couldn’t get myself to stay in front at the computer too much at home, and you have to excuse me, but I get enough at work 8 hours a day. I have been cooking, although not a lot, but I have been trying new recipes, which are waiting their turn to be posted.
The summer about which I wrote a couple of weeks ago, it is definitely now gone. It is still nice, sometimes still very warm, but you could now feel the sun worn out and mellow. The earth smells different and the evening’s and morning’s chill remind you that fall is here. Still not the same fall you would have in other places, but our south-west coast nice, warm and sunny 80% of the time kind of fall. At least now it makes sense to see pumpkins all over, and it doesn’t seem so out of place. I still miss the rain, and I was hoping for it this morning when the marine layer was pretty thick and it was chilly when we left to school, but by 11 o’clock, it was almost 75F (~20C) outside and no clouds in sight. So I’ll keep waiting for it.
Since we had so many nice days in the last two weeks or so, we have tried to get out with Clara for rides on her scooter or walking around in Santa Monica, and had friends over (including from Romania). I love when the table is full and we are passing the food around ( I just don’t like that our table is still too small), it reminds me of our Sunday meals either at my grandma’s house or at our home. We are noisy and loud, we eat and talk a lot, laugh and have a wonderful time. It’s not too much about the food, or at least not as much as I am always stressed about it, but I cannot help myself.
Before my sister went back home last week, we had them over with our goddaughter (actually our parents’ goddaughter, Oana, who is one year younger than my sister, and she is more like a cousin to us) and my friend Lili with her niece. Gabriel stopped by the Polish store in Santa Monica and bought Hungarian sausages, headcheese and some wonderful slab bacon, which you cannot compete with, no matter what you cooked. I made a potato and leeks soup, then we had the fig tart, BBQ chicken with salad and a chocolate roll with raspberries. Oh, and I forgot, I baked bread, one plain and one with rosemary.
Today’s post is about the fig tart and then I’ll come back with the chocolate roll and the bread.
The pastry recipe belongs to Bron Marshall and here is her post (take the time to check our her blog, she is so talented). I found it looking for fig tarts recipes, not for pastry crust, but her photo was so tempting, I decided to use it and it was really amazing. So good, that a couple of days later I made some other small bites using it again. I was completely sold.
I didn’t follow her recipe otherwise, but improvised a little bit with the ingredients I had. I used mascarpone and goat cheese for the first layer on the crust, I baked the figs alone first and I topped the tart with gorgonzola cheese and honey.

It came out really good and the figs with the cheese and honey worked out well. At least me and other 4 of us liked it, but Gabriel and my dear sister made faces and did not care to taste it, they said they had enough food already and figs with gorgonzola cheese and honey were not supposed to be combined. They kept making fun of me all afternoon and didn’t cut me any slack, as usually.
When I made the crust again a couple of days later, I didn’t add honey on top, and Gabriel really liked that snack.

Pastry - recipe from Bron Marshall

1 cup high grade flour ( I used all purpose)
½ teaspoon of salt
½ teaspoon of baking powder
100 grams of butter, cut into small cubes and then frozen
¼ cup of iced water approximately

Place flour, salt and baking powder in to a food processor, pulse to mix.
Add the small frozen butter cubes and very briefly pulse again to mix and break up the butter a little more.
Add enough of the iced water just to bring the pastry together in a few short pulses and form a soft dough.
On a lightly floured board roll the pastry out to a ½ cm thickness and cut 4 disks about 16cm in diameter. ( I made one big tart instead of 4 small ones, and i had about 1/4 of dough left over).
Chill the pastry disks for 20 minutes or until you’re ready to assemble the tarts.
** I mixed everything in a bowl using my hands and it worked out just fine.

Toppings:
3 tablespoons mascarpone cheese mixed with 3 tablespoons goat cheese
500 g figs, cut in quarters, previously baked for about 10 minutes at 450 F/ 230 C
3/4 cup crumbled gorgonzola cheese (ab 100 g)
2-3 tablespoons honey
Preheat your oven to 375 F/ 190 C.
I spread the mascarpone and goat cheese mix on the pastry crust, and topped it with the sliced figs.
I baked it for 20 minutes, then added the crumbled gorgonzola cheese and baked for another 5 minutes or until golden and crisp. When I took it out of the oven, drizzled about 2-3 tablespoons of honey over the top and served it immediately.

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Tarta cu smochine

Am fost cam lenesa in ultimul timp cu postatul. Nu-mi vine sa stau seara la calculator cand sunt acasa, si sper sa fiu scuzata, dar imi ajung 8 ore pe zi la lucru. Am gatit saptaminile trecute, desi nu ingrozitor de mult, dar am incercat retete noi care isi asteapta randul sa fie scrise pe blog.
Vara despre care am scris cateva saptamani in urma, s-a terminat cu siguranta. Este inca foarte placut, destul de des chiar foarte cald, dar poti simti acum soarele molesit, pierzandu-si ardoarea. Pamantul miroase altfel, iar racoarea serilor si diminetilor iti aduce aminte ca toamna a venit. Poate nu aceeasi toamna din alte parti, dar e toamna tipica pentru sudul coastei de vest, placuta, calda si insorita 80% din timp. Cel putin acum face sens sa vezi dovleci peste tot, si nu ti se mai pare ciudat. Inca duc dorul ploii, si azi dimineata speram ca o sa stropeasca macar putin, ceata marina era destul de deasa si rece cand noi am plecat la scoala, dar la 11 erau deja aproape ~20C afara si nici urma de nor pe cer. Asa ca tot astept ploaia pentru cand s-o indura sa vina si la noi.
Si pentru ca am avut atatea zile frumoase in ultimele saptamani, am incercat sa iesim cu Clara de cate ori am putut cu trotineta sau la plimbari prin Santa Monica, am avut prieteni in vizita, chiar si din Romania. Imi place la nebunie cand suntem multi la masa si trecem mancarea de la unii la altii (desi inca avem aceeasi masa destul de mica), imi aduce aminte de mesele de duminica cand mergeam toti la bunica sau ne adunam toti la mama acasa. Suntem galagiosi, mancam si vorbim mult, radem si ne simtim minunat. Nu mancarea e importanta, cel putin nu atat de importanata cat ma stresez eu pentru ce pun pe masa, dar nu ma pot abtine sa nu fiu asa.
Inainte ca sora mea sa mearga acasa saptamana trecuta, ne-am adunat la noi, impreuna cu fina noastra, venita din Romania in vacanta, Oana, care e de fapt fina parintilor nostri, iar noua ca o verisoara, si prietena noastra Lili cu nepoata ei. Gabi s-a oprit pe la magazinul polonez din Santa Monica si a cumparat niste carnati unguresti, toba si slaninuta, care clar ca nu pot fi concurate de mancaruri gatite, mai ales cu paine proaspata si o ceapa rosie langa. Am facut o supa-crema de cartofi cu praz, smantana si bacon, o tarta cu smochine, pui la gratar cu salata si o rulada de ciocolata cu zmeura. Oh, si am uitat, am copt paine, una simpla si una cu rozmarin.
Postul de azi e despre tarta cu smochine, si o sa revin alta data cu rulada de ciocolata si painea.
Reteta pentru aluatul de tarta ii apartine lui Bron Marshall si aici am gasit postul ei. Cautam retete pentru tarte cu smochine, nu pentru aluat, dar poza ei e atat de frumoasa si de tentanta, ca nu m-am putut abtine sa n-o folosesc, si a fost intr-adevar foarte buna. Atat de buna, ca am refacut-o din nou cateva zile mai tarziu, pentru niste gustari. Si m-a castigat complet.
Nu am urmat reteta ei in ce priveste tarta, ci am improvizat cu ingredientele pe care le aveam deja. Am folosit mascarpone amestecat cu branza de capra pentru primul strat peste aluat, am copt smochinele partial inainte de a le pune pe tarta si am pus deasupra niste gorgonzola sfaramitata si miere.
A iesit foarte buna, iar smochinele impreuna cu branza si mierea au mers tare bine. Cel putin mie si inca la patru dintre noi ne-au placut, dar Gabi si sora-mea au facut fete-fete si nu au gustat-o, zicand ca au mancat destula mancare buna, iar smochinele cu gorgonzola si mierea nu ar trebui combinate niciodata. Au facut glume pe seama mea, ca de obicei, toata seara.
Cand am facut aluatul din nou cateva zile mai tarziu, si nu am mai adaugat miere pe tartine, chiar i-a placut lui Gabi. A zis ca asa pot sa le mai fac oricand.

Reteta pentru aluat de tart - ii apartine lui Bron Marshall

125 g faina
½ lingurita sare
½ lingurita praf de copt
100 g unt, foarte foarte rece, taiat in cubulete mici
cca 60 ml apa f.f. rece

Se pun faina, sarea si praful de copt in robotelul de bucatarie si se pulseaza de cateva ori sa se amestece.
Se adauga bucatelele de unt si se pulseaza rar incat untul sa fie sfaramitat si incorporat in faina.
Se adauga apa treptat, pulsand, numai atat cat sa adune aluatul intr-o bila.
Pe o planseta presarata cu faina se intinde foaia de aluat cu grosimea de ½ cm, si se taie 4 discuri de cca 16 cm diametru. Se pun la frigider cel putin 20 minute, sau pana cand sunteit gata sa asamblati tarta si sa o puneti la cuptor.

** Eu am framantat aluatul cu mana, si a mers foarte bine, si am facut numai o tarta mare, nu patru mai mici.

Umplutura pentru tarta:
3 linguri branza mascarpone amestecata cu 3 linguri branza de capra
500 g smochine proaspete, taiate in patru, coapte timp de vreo 10 minute la 450 F/ 230 C
aprox. 100 g branza gorgonzola sfaramitata
2-3 linguri miere

Se incinge cuptorul la 375 F/ 190 C.
Am intins amestecul de mascarpone si branza de capra pe aluat, iar deasupra am aranjat smochinele. Am copt tarta timp de 20 minute, apoi am presarat gorgonzola pe deasupra si am pus-o inapoi la copt inca 5 minute, pana marginea a devenit aurie si crocanta.
Cand am scos-s din cuptor, am picurat mierea pe deasupra si am servit-o imediat.