Mushroom, Goat Cheese & Leek Tart

Oh, this was so incredibly good! My mom and I got together one Sunday afternoon a few weeks back and cooked together. It's always so much fun being in her kitchen & cooking with her! I used to love watching and helping my mom cook as a little girl and now that I'm older, I still love helping her in the kitchen! So we figured out our menu and got down to business.

The recipe for this tart came from Williams-Sonoma and it makes an amazing appetizer.

Mushroom, Goat Cheese & Leek Tart

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 3 lbs. leeks, white parts and 1 inch of pale green parts, thinly sliced
• 2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 1 tsp. salt
• 3/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper
• 1/3 cup creme fraiche
• 3 oz. soft goat cheese, crumbled
• 1/2 lb. cremini mushrooms, cleaned & sliced
• flour for dusting
• 1 sheet puff pastry, thawed to room temp.

DIRECTIONS:

In a fry pan over med-high heat, melt 2 Tbsp. butter until it foams. Add the leeks and saute until translucent, 4-5 min. Add the thyme, bay leaf, stock, 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until the leeks are nearly tender, about 15 min. Uncover and cook, stirring occasionally and being careful not to let the leeks brown, until almost all the liquid has evaporated, about 10-15 min. more. Remove and discard bay leaf.

Transfer the leeks to a bowl. Stir in the creme fraiche and goat cheese until well mixed.

I wiped out the same fry pan and heated it up to med-high heat again. Add the remaining 1 Tbsp. butter until it foams. Add the mushrooms, the remaining 1/2 tsp. salt and the remaining 1/4 tsp. pepper and saute until the mushrooms are soft and have released their juices, 3-5 min.

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Lina a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

Most store bought puff pastry dough already comes in the shape of 10 by 12 inches, but if for some reason yours doesn't, roll out the dough to 10 by 12 inches. Transfer dough to baking sheet. Spread the leek mixture to within 1 inch of the edge of the dough, and fold the edges of the dough over the filling to make a tart.

Bake until the crust puffs and both the crust and the leeks are golden, about 15 min. Scatter the mushrooms over the leeks and bake for 5 min. more.

Let the tart stand for 5-10 min. Cut into bite-size pieces and serve warm.