I recently found the Canelle et Vanille blog, and am soo happy I did! It’s filled with amazing recipes, stories, and incredible food styling and landscape photographs. The author is an ex-pat living in the States, and all her recipes are unsuspectingly gluten-free. They look incredibly delicious first, and upon second glance, have tons of nutritional benefits. This recipe, which is perfect for a cold winter’s night (few and far between this winter) is the first I saw on her site, which you can find here: http://www.cannellevanille.com/2011/12/snow-cheese-and-big-sky-of-montana.html

Considering the impressiveness and pure yumminess of a tart like this, it really wasn’t a huge production to make. A couple steps, waiting, a couple more steps, and waiting while it cooks. I can make quite a mess in the kitchen, but this recipe was pretty straightforward and I was able to take the finished product out into a just-cleaned kitchen! Quite an accomplishment, if I do say so myself.

Shiitake and Purple Potato Tart
makes a 9-inch tart

Tart crust
2/3 cups (90 g) superfine brown rice flour
1/3 cup (45 g) quinoa flour
1/4 cup (40 g) potato starch (corn starch perfectly acceptable)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon chopped rosemary
1 teaspoon thyme leaves
8 tablespoons (110 g) cold unsalted butter, diced (Or coconut oil if you prefer)
6 to 8 tablespoons (90 to 125 ml) ice water

Combine the first seven ingredients in the food processor and pulse a couple of times to aerate. Add the cold diced butter and pulse until butter is the size of peas. Add the ice water and pulse to combine. Press the dough between your fingers and if it comes together, it is ready. Add more ice water, one tablespoon at a time, if needed.

Turn the dough onto your work surface and form into a disk. Chill the dough for 30 minutes.

Dust your work surface and rolling pin with superfine brown rice flour. Roll the dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Fill tart pan with the dough. Trim excess. Chill the tart crust for another 30 minutes.

Shiitake and purple potato filling
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for brushing potatoes
1 small leek, diced
8 ounces (110 g) shiitakes, sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more for topping
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
2 eggs
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk (canned)
2 ounces (60 g) black-truffle chevre or any other soft goat cheese you prefer. I used boucheron, a type of chevre.
2 small purple potatoes, thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 375F.

In a medium saute pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the leeks and cook for 5 minutes or until soft. Add the shiitakes, garlic, salt, and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes until tender stirring occasionally. Add the parsley and stir. Remove pan from heat and let filling cool.

Sauteeing the leeks	Adding the shiitakes, garlic, salt, pepper

In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and coconut milk.

Spread the cooled filling and the goat cheese over the tart crust. Pour the egg mixture and spread evenly. Top with sliced purple potatoes. Brush the tops with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle a pinch of salt over them.

Spreading the cooled filling over the crust.	Adding the cheese and the egg mixture

Bake the tart for 30 to 40 minutes until golden. Let the tart cool for 15 minute before cutting.

Fresh out of the oven	The damage after a few minutes…

brown rice flour butter free coconut milk comfort food corn starch entertaining gluten-free goat cheese leeks potato starch purple potato rosemary thyme winter dinner