Butternut Squash and Bacon-Herb Cream Cheese Tart
Ingredients
- 6 slices good quality smoky bacon (cook 2 more if you tend to snack when you cook)
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 2 tablespoons each chopped parsley and thyme
- 2 cloves garlic, pasted or grated
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- Salt
- 6 tablespoons cold butter, diced plus 2 tablespoons butter for filling
- 4 to 5 tablespoons ice cold water
- 1 pound butternut squash (1/2 medium squash), thinly sliced in half moons
- Pepper
- Freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 large or 2 thin leeks, trimmed and sliced
- 2 Pink Lady or Honeycrisp apple, peeled and sliced
- 2 tablespoons sage leaves, torn or coarsely chopped
- 1 egg, beaten with a splash of water for an egg wash or use buttermilk, to brush pastry
Preparation
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Bake the sliced bacon on a slotted pan until crisp. Remove to cool then chop.
To the cream cheese in the food processor bowl, add the flour, a teaspoon of salt and cold, diced butter. Pulse to combine into small crumbles then, with dough setting on, pour ice water through feed tube to form a pastry dough. (I place about 1/4 cup cold water in my cocktail shaker with ice and shake a few times then strain into the dough to make sure water is super cold.) Remove dough to pastry board and turn a few times to form a smooth disc; wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Heat a very large skillet over medium heat and melt butter, about 2 tablespoons. Add butternut squash and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Add leeks and apples, and cook to soften a bit, 10-12 minutes. Add torn sage leaves to the mixture.
Working on parchment paper, roll out dough to a large, round, thin layer. Spread the bacon and herb cheese over the center of the dough, leaving a couple of inches of border. Top the cheese with an even mound of butternut-apple mixture. Fold the dough up and pinch over every few inches to form a galette or rustic-edged crust. Brush with egg or buttermilk and transfer to baking sheet, bake 30 minutes. Add more wash and bake 10 minutes more. Cool a few minutes to set and transfer to serving plate.
Serve with small green salad with cider vinegar dressing alongside.