This weekend I had a hankering to make a Spanish Almond Tart, but Spanish Almonds were not available in my “super”market. So I had to have a change of tart.
I’m sorry, I really did just say that.

What the heck is a “tart” anyway? Sometimes they’re sweet, sometimes they’re savory. Do they need to be round? Does the crust need to envelope the sides? As with all matters entomological, I resort to Wikipedia, the ultimate authority of combined, if not authoritative, knowledge. According to the Wiki entry:

“A tart is a pastry dish, usually sweet, similar to a pie, but different in that the top is open and not covered with pastry. A tart can also refer to a woman who flirts with a sexual edge.”

Now, not that I’m any authority on this, but how exactly does one flirt with any other kind of edge? I mean, flirting with a serrated edge, for instance, sounds downright dangerous unless of course you’re flirting with a tomato and then it sounds just about right.

In any case, regarding the tart: I’m giving you free license to make it any way you’d like; you can have a change of tart as many times as you want, really. I used puff pastry for it’s show-off-y edges but you can use a shortbread or pie crust (just don’t put on a top.) I filled mine with spinach, parsley and tomatoes, but spinach and raisins would be nice too (The Li’l Sis has a thing against sweet-savory dishes, so my hands were tied on that one.)

My recipe makes a rather light and elegant tart, perfect for lunch, or a dinner eaten while the sun is still in the sky. I suggest paring it with a salad, maybe with artichokes… but you can do whatever you’d like.

Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Serves: 5 - 6

Almond, Spinach and Goat Cheese Tart

crust (see below)
2 bunches of spinach (I use regular spinach, not baby spinach, because it has more flavor)
1 bunch parsley
salt, pepper
nutmeg
2/3 cup of melted butter
1.5 cups almonds. I used blanched and sliced.
2 tomatoes, thinly sliced
4 oz herbed goat cheese

Prepare the spinach: thoroughly wash and drain the spinach and chop it roughly. Wilt it in a large pan over low heat. I find that the water clinging to the spinach after washing it and spinning it in a salad spinner is enough to wilt the spinach without burning it. You want to make sure not to have too much water, or your tart will get all soggy.
Wash, drain, and chop the parsley. Wilt it with the spinach. Season the greens with salt, pepper, and a little nutmeg.

Prepare the almonds: dry roast the almonds in a sauté pan over low heat, stirring often to prevent burn areas. Roast until golden.

Assemble the tart: I used 2 small loaf pans and 1/2 (20 layers) a double box of 9″ x 14″ phyllo dough. Oil your pans first.
Working with phyllo can be tricky (you have to brush each flimsy layer with butter while keeping them moist with a towel) but it’s actually very forgiving and, of course, all the butter makes it very lush and forbidden tasting. Brush 10 layers first, restack in a rectangle and then sort of stuff the layers into the loaf pan. Add the toppings, and put in the oven to bake before repeating with the last 10 layers and other loaf pan.

To top: 1 layer of spinach (1/4 your total amount), 1/2 a sliced tomato, 1/4 of the almonds, 1/2 the cheese, another layer of spinach, the rest of a sliced tomato, and another 1/4 of the almonds.

Bake the tarts in a 350 degree oven for 30 - 40 minutes depending on your crust type.

I had a rough weekend folks. My good friend E was in town from good ole Springfield, Illi-noise and he can be, to put it most lightly, a hard-drinking fellow. He gave me an hands-on education about whiskey (or was it Scotch?) and how peat moss (or was it the aged oak barrels?) gave certain kinds of whisky a distinctive smoky taste. Yeah, well, it was distinctive, in the way that seeing your house on fire might be “distinctive” - harsh, fiery, and tear-inducing. And I’m sure both will have you feeling pretty rough the next day.

I digress. I should be talking about E’s penchant for man-foods. He likes the simple things in life, most of them with plenty of meat, or peat, or whatever… But since he was sleeping on MY futon, darn it, he was relegated to eating veggie burgers, quesadillas, and the food most beloved by man: pizza.

I admit that I’m not sure this pizza can technically be called pizza since it doesn’t have cheese but this is my blog, darn it, and I’m giving you a recipe for some pizza without cheese (or vegan “cheeze”) that can compete on the same level as cheese pizza.

I’ll admit that I got this idea from Amy’s brand roasted veggie pizza. It works. I adapt the recipe. You get to enjoy. This can be your pizza too, darn it, so get to roastin’.

While you’re at it, check out these awesome vegetarian pizzas from other great bloggers:

If you don’t want whole wheat crust, try this wonderfully-illustrated pizza recipe by Elise at Simply Recipes. I haven’t tried it, but I trust Elise!

Jalapeno and Salsa Pizza from Albion Cooks

Pear and Gorgonzola Pizza from Albion Cooks again (Catherine is quite the Veggie Pizza Queen)

I’m dying to try this Cilantro Pesto Pizza with Sweet Garlic Sauce (Yum!) From Brownie Points. McAuliflower suggests that this would make an excellent vegan pizza if you omit the cheese and I agree!

Make Pizza on the Grill with Matt from Matt Bites

Mexican Pizza with Refried Beans from Vive le Vegan

BBQ “Chik’n” Pizza by yours truly

Serves: 4 - 6
Time: 1 hour 15 minutes with a store-bought crust

Vegan Caramelized Onion Pizza

crust recipe for 2 pizzas, homemade or store-bought
6 large sweet onions, sliced to 1/4 inch thick
salt
2 red peppers, cut into pieces
2 green peppers, cut into pieces
1/2 bunch of broccoli, cut into florets
olive oil
freshly cracked pepper

If you want to make your own crust, and believe me, you want to make your own crust, you can use this wheat crust recipe from Allrecipes. It has never failed me. Or you could use store-bought crust or the recipe from your uncle Mario, whatever.

Now it’s time to caramelize your onions. Put them in a skillet with some olive oil and cook, stirring occasionally, over medium-low heat. Add some salt, and cook until they start to turn golden/reddish/brown, about 30 - 40 minutes.

While you’re onions are caramelizing, you can roast your veggies: tumble them in some (a lot of) olive oil, salt, and pepper and put them on a cookie sheet in an oven for 30 minutes or so, or until they are nice and roasty.

Slather your crust with the onions, using them as a sauce. Pile on the roasted veggies. Crack some peppercorns over the top and put in the oven for 25 minutes or so, or until the bottom of the crust is crispy.

Howdy everyone.  Today I’m excited to share with you an excellent, easy and eggtastic vegan recipe.  Fake eggs, people.  We’re talking the darling of vegetarians and grassy-smelling hippies everywhere: t-o-f-u. It’s not eggs; it’s better.

The tofu recipe I shall present you with in a moment has a cushiony-soft and sweet taste like the coming of spring but will still bust your chops with the smoky spicy flavor of chipote pepper.  It’s a two-faced dish for sure, but more for the Lions-to-Lambs of March than the blustery two-faced Janus.  The veggies folded in the tofu provide nice color and texture contrasts.
 
I made this dish as the vegan option for my latest brunch and it was a big hit with vegans, vegetarians, carnivores, adults, children, and accordionists alike.  It was actually my first time making tofu scramble and I wasn’t convinced that smooched tofu had anything going it (except being fun to smooch) but it’s taste, texture, and hash-brown compatibility made it a complete winner.  Enjoy!
 
Serves: 5
Time: 20 minutes

Chipotle-Maple Tofu Scramble

1/2 a small 7oz can chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
1/4 cup of maple syrup
2 8oz packages of extra firm Tofu
1 green pepper, diced
2 tomatoes, deseeded and diced
2 bunches green onions, sliced
1/4 tsp turmeric for color, optional
salt

Blend together the chipotle peppers and adobo sauce with the maple syrup in a blender or food processor.
 
Drain the water from your tofu.  Try to get as much out as possible by squeezing with a towel or using a colander + paper towel contraption.  Wetness is your enemy in this recipe, so try to get as much liquid out of the tofu and tomatoes as possible.
 
If your skillet tends to stick add a little olive oil and heat over medium heat. Sauté the green peppers for a few minutes then add the tofu, chipotle-maple mix, tomatoes, green onions, turmeric, and a little salt to taste. 
 
Smooch up the tofu with the back of a wooden spoon, stir, and heat until any extra liquid is absorbed or until the tofu is hot and the veggies are soft.

Photos from past Saturday’s brunch, sans any commentary.

All these pics (and more) were taken by the esteemed Andrew Strasser.  Many thanks Andrew!