Asparagus, Ricotta and Gruyere Puff Pastry Tart with Lemon Zest, Dijon and an Everything Bagel Seasoning Crust
Spring has sprung and what better vegetable to signify spring than asparagus. This is a very popular tart to make now on the internet and we try to bring you all the new trends and also keep them seasonal. Our new love is puff pastry. Why were we so afraid of it? It literally is just thawed, rolled out and baked. That’s it. And so versatile. It just looks intimidating. But what a subtle buttery, soft crunch it gives. A perfect frame for whatever your showcasing inside. You can change the cheese up to whatever you have on hand. We love it with grated truffle cheese too. Add peas or another spring vegetable. But with only a 10 minute prep and a 30 minute bake, you have a wonderfully beautiful appetizer, side or main dish to serve.
Prep Time: 16 minutes
Cooking Time: 30-35 minutes
Serves: 6
Ingredients:
1 box of frozen puff pastry, thawed
1-2 Tbs dijon mustard
1/4 cup ricotta cheese
1 1/2 cup grated gruyere
1 bunch asparagus
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 tsp grated lemon zest
salt and pepper to taste
Everything Bagel Seasoning
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Open up your thawed puff pastry and place it on a piece of parchment. Lightly flour the top of the puff pastry and roll it out to into a 10 X 15 rectangle.
Score a 1 inch thick line all around the sides of the pastry.
Prick the pastry about every inch with a fork inside of the one inch border that you scored. This will help it to lay flat and avoids large raised areas from the bubbles.
Place the parchment on a cookie sheet and place in the oven for 10 minutes. Press down briefly on any large area in the middle that bubbles up. This will not happen if you pricked your dough before baking.
Meanwhile, wash and trim and pat dry your asparagus spears so that they fit into the inside area of your pastry which will leave the one inch border with no topping.
Remove the puff pastry after 10 minutes. Brush the area inside the border with the dijon mustard.
Dollop small amounts of the ricotta cheese onto the tart. Smear around a little with a spoon. It does not matter if it is even or not,
Spinkle the gruyere cheese inside the border and place the asparagus spears on top.
Top the spears with the grated lemon zest and then the grated Parmesan. Sprinkle salt and pepper on top.
Whip the egg with 1 tsp of water. Brush the pastry edge with the egg. Spinkle with the Everything Bagel Seasoning.
Bake an additional 20-25 minutes. Watch that it does not brown too much and if necessary, tent a piece of aluminum foil over the tart to protect it when the edge has reached the desired golden color you desire. You must not lay the aluminum flat as it will stick to the cheese. Just lightly cover the whole tart.