Mushroom Spinach Tart

     Labor Day is behind us and I am determining what to do with the groceries that remain from all my holiday recipes. 

     Before I  grocery shop I like to take an inventory. This helps cut down on duplication and helps me keep variety in our meals.

     It didn’t take me long to discover

4oz mushrooms $.85

4oz spinach    $.70
½ cup Parmesan cheese $1.00
Sprinkle of flour & splash of ½ & 1/2  $.40

S&P  $.10

Thyme from the garden

     I immediately decided to create a spinach mushroom tart for dinner

After my morning coffee I made the tart dough

I added:

1-cup AP flour $.20

¾ stick (COLD COLD) unsalted $.75 butter

½ tps salt

fresh thyme

½ tsp cayenne

I pulsed it in my food processor till it was crumbly like (little pea size bits)

I slowly added

3 TBS cold water till it balled up soft and smooth. (Don’t overdo)

It took less than 5 minutes. Really try it.


      I wrapped it in plastic and let it sit in the fridge till later.(It is important to let the gluten relax) You can do this a day ahead if you wish

    I pre heated the oven to 375-degrees

I rolled out the dough and placed into a tart pan. Then I docked (poked a few holes with a fork) and

Docking the crust

Weighed the crust down with a pie pan inserted over the dough  (some use pie beads I used a heavy pan) 

Pop in the oven for 20 minutes remove the weight pans and leave the tart pan to brown at 350 till golden about 10 minutes. Cool completely on rack.

FILLING:

I sautéed the mushrooms in butter

When they were just about done I add a splash of sherry (optional but tasty) and S&P, then set it aside

I sautéed the onion next till soft 10 minutes or so

Add spinach to the onion and-cooked till wilted (rather quickly)  
I added S&P to taste, a Sprinkle of flour and splash of ½ & 1/2


I sprinkled a tsp of cheese on the crust of the tart added the onion & spinach mixture, topped with the mushrooms

then with almost ½ cup Parmesan cheese

I returned the tart to a 350 degree oven till very warm.
Total $4.00 give or take a few cents

     TIP OF THE DAY: Leftovers can be used and recombined to make amazing and delicious brand new meals. Sharing leftovers with your friends after a meal you all enjoy together gives everyone involved the opportunity to quickly and easily try something completely new that may become a family favorite!
*Check out this blog tomorrow to see how I used the leftover tart dough...