A Breakfast Tart
Several stunning tastes and textures in one bite – there lies the beauty of a tart, and a Freedom Farms savoury breakfast version is one of our absolute favourite types of tart...
Here’s the thing – tart needn’t be fancy: make your own pastry if you like, but bought pastry is just as good; all you need to remember is to take it out of the freezer a wee bit in advance to defrost on the bench and you’re good to go!
Tomatoes are coming into season and there’s not much we love more than a really good tomato paired with Freedom Farms bacon – both have umami characteristics; they play very well together.
Savoury Breakfast Tart
Serves 4
1 savoury short pastry sheet, defrosted
½ cup balsamic onion relish (or use caramelised onions)
125g tomatoes, sliced (we used a mix of cherry and larger red tomatoes from Curious Croppers)
4 slices Freedom Farms shoulder bacon, sliced into long strips
5-6 Freedom Farms size M eggs
Handful or two fresh herbs, chopped (parsley, lovage, sage, thyme, oregano)
1 clove garlic, peeled
½ cup creme fraiche
Heat oven to 180℃.
Line a shallow baking dish or tray (30x20cm) with baking paper and cover the base and 1 inch up the sides with pastry. Lay a sheet of baking paper on top of the pastry, spread out ceramic baking balls and blind bake the pastry for 10 minutes.
Remove the baking balls and top sheet of baking paper. Spread onion jam evenly across the base, and arrange most of the tomato slices on top (save some for serving). One by one crack eggs into a small bowl and tip onto the tart so they’re fairly evenly placed across it. Lay strips of bacon as you like on top. Grind over black pepper and sprinkle over a little flaky salt.
Bake for 20-25 mins until the bacon is crisping, egg is cooked, and pastry is golden at the edges.
Meanwhile blitz herbs, garlic clove, and creme fraiche in a food processor till herbs are finely chopped and it’s combined well.
Top cooked tart with slices of raw tomato and dollops of herb cream.
Notes:
Freedom Farms shoulder bacon is our pick for pies and tarts: big meaty flavour, easily sliced, and a nice edge of fat to keep things juicy.
Puff pastry works fine here too – skip the blind baking step if using it.
Switch out the onion jam for kasundi, pesto, sauteed spinach or kale, olive tapenade, or simple handfuls of grated cheese depending on your mood.
Any leftover herb cream is great as a dip or topping for so many dishes. If you don’t have creme fraiche, sour cream works well too.
Of course, this tart isn’t only great at breakfast – it’s perfect picnic or casual dinner fodder, too.
Get Smashed
We’re talking neither avocado nor alcohol here, but rather a look at how great smashed legumes on toast are! Whether it’s fresh broad beans (in the midst of their short season right now – get in there real quick!) or frozen, or fresh or frozen peas, or even shelled edamame beans (find them in the freezer section at Farro, Moore Wilson’s, Asian grocers) – they make for a vibrant coloured toast topping that welcomes many variations.
Cooking the legumes well to start with helps retain sweet flavour. Peas and edamame beans just need a few minutes in boiling water before being refreshed in ice water. For broad beans, take them out of their outer pod, blanch for a scant few minutes in boiling water, then refresh in ice water. Then – a vital step if you like a clean, sweet flavour and tender texture – make a nick in the outside of each bean and remove the coat to pop out the bright green bean inside – you only want to use those inner beans.
Using a mortar and pestle or with a few brief pulses in a food processor, smash the beans or peas with something creamy – that might be feta, creme fraiche, sour cream, avocado, or a thick coconut yoghurt for a dairy-free version. Season with salt and pepper. Pile generously onto thick slices of toast (a good crusty sourdough, or a heavy seeded bread is good here), top with a poached egg and a scattering of baby mint leaves or other fresh herbs for a beautiful breakfast.
That’s a simple version… here are some ways to jazz it up:
After blitzing, stir through some toasted sliced almonds or pine nuts.
Spike with some finely chopped fresh or pickled jalapeños.
Go to town with sprinkles on top: dukkah, za’atar, togarashi, hemp seeds, toasted sesame seeds and pomegranate arils all work well.
Include some finely diced shallot or onion in the mix for a sharper bite.
Add a layer of grilled Freedom Farms streaky bacon, or sliced and browned Freedom Farms smoked pork chorizo.
Add some blanched and diced asparagus or kale – it adds another verdant tone to the legumes (read more below about why we should be eating more asparagus!)
A good crisp chilli oil (we’re fans of Good Chow’s) is a nice top dollop.
Spear a Thought
Aotearoa’s asparagus farmers are having an annus horribilis. With restaurants in Auckland and Waikato not operating for months at a time, and exports having dried up, much of this year’s crop will be left unpicked and farmers will be hit hard financially.
We can each help in one delicious way– by buying and eating as much of the good green stuff as we can while it’s still around. Here are some of our favourite ways to enjoy asparagus at breakfast and brunch time:
Blanched and lightly seasoned, as dippers for soft-boiled eggs
Baked into quiche with diced diced Freedom Farms rindless middle bacon, whisked Freedom Farms eggs, and lashings of grated gruyere
Blanched and folded into savoury crepes or buckwheat galettes with caramelised onions and blue cheese
Blanched and diced and cooked in a skillet frittata with Freedom Farms eggs and piles of fragrant fresh herbs like dill , lovage, and basil.
Bundles of oiled asparagus spears wrapped in Freedom Farms streaky bacon and cooked under the grill till crisping, and served topped with poached eggs.
Blanched and finely diced, combined with Freedom Farms eggs, a little flour, creamy feta, dill, and lemon zest and made into crisp fritters
That’s all from us this week! Stay safe, and be nice to each other. Don’t forget to share The Breakfast Club with other foodies in your life. See you again soon 👋