A Savory Corned Beef Tart Recipe For St. Patrick’s Day
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Here’s something special for St. Patrick’s Day and beyond: a recipe from cookbook author Judith McLoughlin, an Irish chef now living in the southern U.S. who has created her own unique food fusion by blending the techniques of her homeland with the flavors of the American South. Thus, her Crumbled Corn Beef & Sweet Potato Tart combines the South’s sweet potatoes with the corned beef that’s traditional in the U.S. on St. Patrick’s Day*. The recipe is one of 100 featured in her cookbook, A Return To Ireland: A Culinary Journey From America To Ireland. You can serve this savory tart with a salad at lunchtime, or as a first course at dinner. Good question. A quiche is a savory French custard tart. The key ingredients in this recipe—corned beef and sweet potato—aren’t French. But here are the basic differences between tart and quiche: For The Pastry 1. MAKE the pastry. Combine the flour and salt in a medium size bowl or food processor. Use a pastry fork or the processor to cut in the butter until it resembles coarse crumbs. Add the cold water 1 tablespoon at a time and mix until the dough is moist enough to hold together to form a ball. Flatten it into a disc and wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. 2. PREHEAT the oven to 375°F. 3. LIGHTLY FLOUR a surface and roll the dough into a circle about 11 inches in diameter. Place it in a 9-inch pie plate or fluted tart pan. Trim off any excess pastry and prick the bottom of the dough with a fork. 4. PRE-BAKE† the crust before filling it. Line the crust with a double layer of foil and bake for 10 minutes to prevent browning. Remove the foil and bake the pastry for a few more minutes until golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack; leave the oven on. 5. MAKE the custard‡ filling. In a large skillet add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and sauté the leeks for 3–4 minutes or until soft and fragrant. Remove from the heat. 6. ADD to a food processor or mixing bowl the eggs, cream, mashed sweet potato, salt, and pepper. Blend to combine thoroughly. 7. ASSEMBLE the tart: Layer the corned beef, leeks, and cheeses on the bottom of the crust. and then pour the egg mixture on top. 8. Bake for 30–35 minutes or until the egg sets and is firm to the touch. Allow the quiche to sit for at least 15 minutes before serving. Growing up in County Armagh in Northern Ireland and setting down roots in the South, over the past decade Judith McLoughlin has become one of the most recognized Irish faces and brands in Atlanta, throughout the American South and abroad. She regularly contributes to food columns in national newspapers and magazines on both sides of the Atlantic and leads numerous discovery tours from the U.S. to Ireland annually. Her first Irish-Southern fusion food cookbook is The Shamrock and Peach. The popularity of corned beef and cabbage never crossed the Atlantic back to Ireland. Instead of corned beef and cabbage, the traditional St. Patrick’s Day meal eaten in Ireland is lamb. †This is also known as blind baking. ‡Whether savory or sweet, all custards are made basically the same ingredients: mainly eggs and/or yolks, as well as cream or milk, and salt; sugar for sweet custards; and appropriate flavorings and optional inclusions for both. |
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