Savory Holiday Tart

Makes 1 9-inch tart

Ingredients:

- 1 Recipe Savory Pie Crust (Pate Brisee)- fully prepared for filling; blind baking required
- 1 medium Turnip (chopped into cubes)
- 1 large Parsnip (chopped into cubes)
- Butternut Squash (chopped into cubes- slightly more than the amount of turnip cubes)
- 2 Spanish Onions (sliced thinly)
- Sage (to taste)
- Rosemary (to taste)
- Thyme (to taste)
- Heavy Cream
- 1 Egg
- Gruyere cheese (to taste)
- Parmesan cheese (to taste)
- Kosher Salt
- Fresh Black Pepper
- Nutmeg- freshly grated
- Olive Oil/Butter
- Sugar and/or Honey

*A tart mold with a removable bottom is preferable for this recipe if you are making the crust from scratch.
**I like to use a higher ratio of parsnips to turnips.


Directions

- Toss the cubed turnips, parsnips and butternut squash in a large bowl with olive oil, kosher, salt, pepper, and fresh rosemary, thyme, and sage to taste. I use more thyme then rosemary/sage. Spread out onto a greased baking sheet and roast in a 400 degrees oven until fully baked. Set aside to cool once baked.

- Meanwhile, make your caramelized onions. Get a pan hot over medium heat with equal parts olive oil and butter (1 tbsp total). Add the onions and start sweating. Add salt, pepper, and fresh thyme. Reduce the heat to medium/low and caramelize the onions until soft and completely cooked. This will take about 30 minutes to an hour depending on the amount of onions. Taste for seasonings and add salt/pepper if needed. If the onions didn’t get sweet enough through the caramelization, add some sugar and/or honey. Set aside to cool.

- In a bowl, whisk the egg with about 1/3 cup heavy cream. Add fresh nutmeg, gruyere and parmesan cheese to taste. The egg and cream is just for binding the tart filling. You can add more heavy cream if needed later.

- On your fully prepared tart crust, spread out a layer of caramelized onions. Combine the remaining caramelized onions and roasted vegetables together. You may not need all of the caramelized onions. Just add enough to your desire and taste. Add in the cream/cheese/egg mixture. Add additional cream if needed. Taste for seasonings and add salt/pepper as needed.

-Spoon the filling evenly onto your tart crust. Sprinkle top with additional gruyere and parmesan cheese if desired.

-Place the tart on a baking sheet in a 350 degrees oven. Bake long enough to cook the cream, cheese and egg (about 20 minutes). There should be a nice browning on the top.

-Remove from oven once cooked and let it set slightly before cutting and serving. This can also be made in advance and reheated or served at room temperature.