P's and Q's - Puff Pastry, Quiche and Quince
I must apologize for this less than inspired 'abc' themed post. I had planned to make the apple and quince tart, and thawed the package of puff pastry from my freezer, to use as a base, a few days ago. And then circumstances forced me to put things off. In fact, I wasn't going to make it this weekend after all, but I had kind of 'hinted' to a fellow blogger that I was going to make a special dessert. So, I gritted my teeth and followed through.
Rather than cut into the tart below, I made a mini tart with puff pastry scraps and leftover apple slices. Then served it piping hot with some ice cream. It was quite sweet so you may prefer to serve it with barely sweetened whipped cream or even some manchego cheese ... a traditional Spanish pairing with quinces.
Apple and Quince Jam Puff Pastry Tart
Puff pastry tart base with quince jam over it. NOTE: You might want to go a bit lighter on the jam than I did. It's REALLY sweet. The apples (Golden Delicious) are ready for peeling and slicing
Place the sliced apples over the quince jam in a pretty pattern of your choice.
The jam has been covered with the apple slices. All that's left is to brush melted and sieved apricot jam over the apples and then bake.
Apple and Quince Jam Tart - you'll notice that the apples have shrunk quite a bit, compared to the last picture under the cut above, so feel free to overlap your apples more than you think you should. Especially in the center.
The quiche below was a desperate creation to use up the rest of the puff pastry and the last of a package of sliced mushrooms (a poor choice compared to buying whole mushrooms but they were on sale and I was watching my pennies). The ham used would have served one person as a main but, in quiche, it's enough for SIX portions.
Unbaked quiche - some diced ham, sauteed sliced mushrooms and caramelized onions, fresh parsley and dill, a handful or two of shredded cheddar cheese, and, of course, eggs and milk which have been beaten together along with ground nutmeg, salt and pepper for seasoning. Being able to just thaw and roll out the puff pastry as a base is a great labour saving measure.
Cheddar, Ham and Mushroom Quiche - I never get tired of how PRETTY a quiche can be before and after baking. :)
Rather than cut into the tart below, I made a mini tart with puff pastry scraps and leftover apple slices. Then served it piping hot with some ice cream. It was quite sweet so you may prefer to serve it with barely sweetened whipped cream or even some manchego cheese ... a traditional Spanish pairing with quinces.
Apple and Quince Jam Puff Pastry Tart
Puff pastry tart base with quince jam over it. NOTE: You might want to go a bit lighter on the jam than I did. It's REALLY sweet. The apples (Golden Delicious) are ready for peeling and slicing
Place the sliced apples over the quince jam in a pretty pattern of your choice.
The jam has been covered with the apple slices. All that's left is to brush melted and sieved apricot jam over the apples and then bake.
Apple and Quince Jam Tart - you'll notice that the apples have shrunk quite a bit, compared to the last picture under the cut above, so feel free to overlap your apples more than you think you should. Especially in the center.
The quiche below was a desperate creation to use up the rest of the puff pastry and the last of a package of sliced mushrooms (a poor choice compared to buying whole mushrooms but they were on sale and I was watching my pennies). The ham used would have served one person as a main but, in quiche, it's enough for SIX portions.
Unbaked quiche - some diced ham, sauteed sliced mushrooms and caramelized onions, fresh parsley and dill, a handful or two of shredded cheddar cheese, and, of course, eggs and milk which have been beaten together along with ground nutmeg, salt and pepper for seasoning. Being able to just thaw and roll out the puff pastry as a base is a great labour saving measure.
Cheddar, Ham and Mushroom Quiche - I never get tired of how PRETTY a quiche can be before and after baking. :)