Tout les matins il achetait son petit pain au chocolat

While my blog persona revolves around culinary adventures, my day job is teaching French to elementary students. While food is a passion of mine (I know. I know… Understatement of the millennium), I share equally as much zeal for everything French – the language, the culture, and (surprisingly enough) the food. I’m sure many of you have had experience with some French dishes (tasting them, if nothing else). Au gratin (potato, seafood, or anything else you can think of), quiche, Dijon mustard, crêpes, ratatouille, and the list is infinite… This particular dish is not one that I had ever heard of before coming across the recipe in Food Network Magazine.

Vegetable Tarte Tatin

Since I made the dish, I’ve twice come across apple tarte tatins on dessert menus, but my dish was served as a side dish. Not only is this recipe delicious, but it is also beautiful! I’ll admit that presentation of food isn’t my forte, but you can’t but this dish look impressive. The colors alone make it exceptional. This dish, however, is not a super-simple weeknight menu as many of the dishes I share are. The first time I made it, it took four tries and a full hour and a half for me to make the caramel portion, but once I did some research (and made a frustrated phone call to my mom), I found the trick – medium heat and patience.

So to make this delectable winter veggie dish, when you get to the part where you need to make the caramel, follow these instructions:

-  Heat a small to medium skill on medium heat.

-   Add the required amount of sugar (no water yet!)

-   Let it cook. It will take a while, probably 10 minutes, before it starts to melt and turn to caramel. Keep an eye on it and when it begins to melt/brown, begin to slowly and occasionally stir until it is all melted and looks like caramel.

-  Take it off the heat and SLOWLY and a bit at a time add the required amount of water, stirring constantly.

So next time you’re looking to impress with a delicious and fabulous-looking side dish, give this one a try. You won’t be disappointed.

Vegetable Tarte Tatin

[From Food Network Magazine]

Ingredients

2 medium Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch-thick rounds

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch-thick rounds

2 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch-thick rounds

1 small onion, cut into 1/2-inch-thick rounds

4 cloves garlic, halved

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

3/4 cup sugar

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

1 tablespoon small fresh sage leaves

1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves

6 ounces mozzarella, grated (about 1 cup)

1 8.5-ounce sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed

All-purpose flour, for dusting

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Toss both kinds of potatoes, the parsnips, onion, garlic, olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper in a bowl. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet; bake until tender, about 45 minutes. Let cool slightly.

[The following few sentences, in italics, are the directions on making caramel that I altered. I recommend referring to the above directions.] Meanwhile, mix 2 tablespoons water and the sugar in a skillet and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook, swirling the pan, until amber, about 7 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the vinegar and ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper. Pour the caramel into a 9-by-13-inch glass baking dish and spread with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle the sage and oregano on top.

Arrange the roasted potatoes and parsnips in a single snug layer on top of the caramel. Scatter the onion and garlic over the roasted vegetables; sprinkle evenly with the mozzarella.

Roll out the puff pastry on a lightly floured surface into a 9-by-13-inch rectangle. Pierce the pastry all over with a fork, then lay it on top of the mozzarella, folding the edges under to fit, if necessary. Bake 20 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F and continue baking until the dough is cooked through, 15 to 20 more minutes.

Let the tart cool 10 minutes in the baking dish, then carefully invert it onto a cutting board. Replace any vegetables that stick to the dish, if necessary.