Caramelized Onion, Apple & Goat Cheese Tart

This savory tart is perfect for a light dinner with a green salad or as a fabulous dipper in your favorite fall soup. Feel free to substitute for your favorite flavor pairing: pears and gruyere, roasted tomato and ricotta, or even something funky like roasted Brussel sprout, apple and blue cheese. Yum!

For the Caramelized Onion-Apple Compote:

Ingredients

• 2-3 medium onions, sliced
• 2.5 tablespoons butter/margarine or olive oil
• 2-3 medium apples cored and cut into chunks – I like Granny Smiths, but you can use any firm apple. Also, feel free to peel the apples if you’d like but I prefer the skins on
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons grated or finely minced fresh ginger — 2 teaspoons if using dried ginger powder
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Heat a sauté pan with high sides (or a large sauce pot) to medium heat and add the sliced onions and season with a big pinch of salt.
2. Cook the onions until they start to brown, and then add the butter or oil – this will help the onions caramelize faster.
3. After about 15-20 minutes, deglaze the pan with 2 tablespoons of the vinegar, and, if using, pour into a larger pot.
4. Add the apples, sugar, ginger, and the rest of the vinegar to the pot.
5. Mix all the ingredients and bring them to a boil over medium-high heat.
6. Lower the heat to medium low, and simmer the mixture uncovered for about 20 minutes, stirring every few minutes.
7. After about 20 minutes, as the mixture has thickened and reduced, add the lemon juice, salt, thyme, rosemary, and cinnamon.
8. Continue to cook on medium heat and cook for another 5 minutes, then turn off the heat.
9. Let the mixture cool for a few minutes before eating, and I think it tastes even better if you refrigerate it and eat it later or even the next day! 

For the tart dough -- very versatile!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter (or margarine), diced and cold
• 1/2 cup ice water
• 1-2 cups caramelized onion and apple filling
• 8oz goat cheese or chèvre

Directions:

1. For the crust: add 2 cups of flour, sugar, butter/margarine,, and salt into the bowl of a food processor — Don’t have a food processor? Feel free to use a hand mixer, pastry cutter, or even 2 forms — just try to resist the urge to use your hands since we want the butter/margarine and the dough to stay cold.
2. Pulse the ingredients together, then start to pour the ice water (ice included) through the feeder (or add a bit at a time if not using food processor) until the dough starts to crawl up the side of the bowl and becomes a loose ball of dough
3. Empty the dough out onto a floured board or counter and gently form into a ball —resist the urge to knead!
4. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, but up to a few hours or overnight

To Finish the Tart:

Directions:

1. While the dough is chilling, prep the rest of the ingredients
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit
3. Once the dough has been chilled, roll into a rectangle and place on a parchment lined baking sheet — you can also put this dough into a tart pan (with fluted edge)
4. Spread a thin layer of the goat cheese onto the tart dough — if doing as a freeform rectangular tat, make sure to leave a small border (about 1/2 inch or so)
5. Add a layer of the onion-apple filling onto the goat cheese,  and then crumble some more goat cheese on top of the apples and onions
6. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm and drizzle with a thick balsamic syrup and a salad on the side for a light lunch or dinner. Yum!