Mustard Tart
I admit that the thought of a “mustard tart” did not make me drool. I like mustard but in very small doses. It seems to be a big flavor bully and makes everything you put it in taste like mustard. But I am participating in “French Fridays with Dorie, ” in which we follow a pre-determined schedule for making the recipes in this book, and this was on the agenda so I took a leap of faith. And I’m glad I did.
The mustard is incredibly and unbelievably subtle and everything in this tart works together beautifully. You probably can’t tell from my picture but I cut my carrots not so much in thin batons, as required, but more like thick table legs, and it still worked. A very good testament to how good this tart is: my 13-year-old daughter not only loved it but she ate the leftovers, one piece for breakfast the next day and she took one to school. She’s not exactly a picky eater but I’ve never seen her eat anything leftover unless it was pizza.
Unfortunately, Dorie has asked us not to post her recipes on our blogs. But I’ll try to give you a good sense of what this tart is all about.
The crust is a standard tart dough (flour, butter, an egg, a tiny bit of sugar, ice water). It’s a little crumbly so you might have trouble getting it to form a ball or rolling it out. Add a tiny bit more water if it won’t pinch together but be restrained. The filling is just eggs and cream and two kinds of mustard. I did not get fancy but used the store brand dijon and a whole-grain mustard I happened to have on hand. The carrots and leeks are steamed first and then added after the filling.
I served this with a very simple salad and a large serving of self-discipline so as not to eat the rest of the tart after my family went to bed.
I was with you – I thought “mustard tart???” But I made it and loved it. Your tart looks great – no table legs there.
Hi, Kate,
This looks good.
I tend to have a jar of Edmond Fallot Dijon Mustard in the house because I like to eat it as a condiment with steak, and I think it’s much better than the supermarket brand. Have you every tried it? If I’m not mistaken it was mentioned in Bouchon, but I don’t know if it’s in Ad Hoc too. I haven’t tried the Edmond Fallot Whole-Grain Mustard, but I have seen it on the shelf.
Do you think this would be good as a late afternoon bite with a glass of wine? We tend to eat late on Saturday night, and it seems this would keep our appetites in check or be good when people, who are not staying for dinner, stop by around 4:00 p.m. For some reason, it sounds so appealing now that there is a nip in the air.
Hi Victoria. Yes, I think it would be perfect as an app. For some reason though, I think the round shape would throw me so I might make it as a rectangular tart pan and cut it into squares.
I have not tried either of those mustards. As you saw, I am a tentative mustard eater!
I think Dorie even comments that it will serve 6 as a starter, cut into squares. It would be great in a square pan.
I loved these tarts, but I am a huge mustard fan.
That self-discipline came into play in my house as well, because I was in bed and keep thinking – Midnight snack, midnigh snack. You be proud to know I held off and instead eat it for breakfast (JUST AS GOOD, if not better!).
Oh Monica, your pictures are SO BEAUTIFUL! Love your blog!
perfectly gorgeous tart.
It’s funny, quite a few of us in the group didn’t find the idea of this tart initially appealing but then fell for it when it came out of the oven. The mustard and egg is a good combo to remember isn’t it.
It’s funny, quite a few of us in the group didn’t find the idea of this tart initially appealing but then fell for it when it came out of the oven. The mustard and egg is a good combo to remember isn’t it.
I love that phrase…flavor bully. Great post.
I laughed when I read “flavor bully” – how true that can be! My little kids were not fond of the tart, though I think my daughter could be persuaded to try it again. Lovely job!