Chanterelle and Goat Cheese Tart or Tartlets
Chanterelles (Cantarellus Cibarius) have always been my favourite mushrooms and since I paired them with goat cheese for the first time in my life, I have never got tired of this perfect combination. The fresh marjoram is here, as the French say “la cerise sur le gâteau” (the cherry on the cake), in other words the last, perfecting, touch.
If you prepare a big tart or individual tartlets, both can be prepared either with ripening goat cheese or with fresh goat cheese. After many experiments I now opt for half of each and find this the ideal combination. Since fresh marjoram can be difficult to get, I grow it on my balcony or buy it and freeze it so that I am never short of it: the tartlets are not the same without this herb. If you cannot find it, don’t use the dried marjoram, which is too bitter. You can use oregano or thyme (both fresh) instead, but I am afraid it will completely change the taste. Personally I prefer to skip the herb rather than use something different. The tartlets are wonderful served at a party or simply enjoyed as an aperitif with a glass of white wine. Prepare lots of them, as they disappear in no time at all…
For those who don’t know what the chanterelle looks like, an old photo of mine:
Special equipment:
pastry cutter
mini-tart dishes or 1 dish with mini-tart cavities
Preparation time: around 1 hour 30 min
Ingredients (12 tartlets):
1 ready-made puff /shortcrust pastry package (mine was a 230g package) or your own home made pastry
250g goat cheese (I put half fresh goat cheese and half ripening, mouldy fat goat cheese)
400 g chanterelles
1 big onion
1 tablespoon oil
1 tablespoon butter
200 ml liquid cream (or half cream and half milk)
3 eggs
a bunch of fresh marjoram
salt, pepper
Preheat the oven to 180°C.
When it reaches the above temperature, cut out the slightly bigger circles than the tart dishes (or tart cavities) you have.
Grease mini-tart dishes (or a big mould with mini-tart cavities) and line them with the pastry, pressing with your fingers. Make small holes in them pricking with a fork.
Cover the flat surface with pieces of baking sheet and put some dried beans on it*. This way the pastry will not rise too much.
Precook the tart shells until they are no longer raw, but still white or slightly golden.
Take them out, put the beans back into their jar and let the tart shells cool.
In the meantime wash the chanterelles, cut up the bigger ones into smaller pieces.
Chop the onion and fry in oil. When it becomes translucent, add the chanterelles and the butter.
Cook them at low heat covered for around 20 minutes, add salt and marjoram leaves and finish cooking uncovered until almost all the liquid is evaporated.
Combine with the cream, the eggs and freshly ground pepper.
Crumble the goat cheese on the precooked tart shells.
Cover with the chanterelles mixture and bake at 180°C until dark gold.
Serve warm.
*I have a big jar of dried beans bought especially for pastry precooking. You can use the same jar of beans for years.
These look so yummy – the perfect thing for parties, I agree. I always have terrible trouble with pastry – it always ends up being tasteless and boring, or too soggy, like it’s taken on too much water. Yours look wonderfully crisp and golden!
Thank you Charles! If you precook the pastry, it never gets soggy! (I always precook it when I plan to put the eggs and cream mixture).
Ohhh these tartlets look delicious Sissi! Thanks for sharing the picture of chanterelle. What a cute name too. I wonder how it tastes like… It goes well with goat cheese… hmm. I saw last year’s post, too. I think my family will like small ones since they are like bite size. These made me really hungry… 🙂
Thank you Nami! I know chanterelles grow in the US (my Swiss shop imports them when they are no longer or not yet in season in Europe). I hope you’ll find them on farmer markets (though they are not farmed, but wild…).
I have never tried chanterelle with feta – or other salty ingredients like bacon. I’ve always eaten with a cream based sauce, I need to think outside the box:)
Mr. Three-Cookies, there is a cream-based sauce and goat cheese (at least the French ones) is not salty and ‘violent’ like feta. It has a very delicate taste and doesn’t hide the chanterelle flavour. I would never try chanterelles with feta… It’s’too strong.
OK, I misunderstood. Goat Cheeses is not necessarily feta though feta is goats cheese. I tried some feta yesterday, delicious and salty and not chanterelle’s friend:) Point taken. Have a nice Friday.
Feta is ewe cheese, not goat cheese. I think you mixed up the animals 🙂
This is embarassing. I am a goat – Capricorn, I should have known better:( A quick internet research has fixed everything. I am familiar with chèvre but didn’t realise it was goats cheese which is not feta!!! I mixed up the animals and names, and hopefully not much more. Reminds me, I haven’t eaten a goat or lamb in a long time:)
Don’t worry! I’m not a cheese specialist either, but there is often the ewe image on feta, that’s’easier to remember 🙂 i have eaten goat only once in my life, in a Carribean restaurant. It was good, but very strong and I couldn’t eat it as often as lamb. You made me want to eat lamb now!
Oh…I love chanterelle mushrooms…! I was not familiar with these mushrooms until I came to Germany. I usually use them for western meat dishes, but these tartlets are a wonderful idea, indeed :)!
Thank you CG! These tartlets/tart are one of the rare vegeterian dishes I can enjoy and feel completely satisfied (not missing the lack of fish, seafood, meat etc.). It is really rare in my case! I suppose you have lots of beautiful chanterelles in Germany…
These tarts look delicious. I’ve printed it and it will go to the kitchen in just a few minutes. 🙂
Thank you, Maureen, and welcome to my blog! I am so happy you want to try my recipe! I hope you enjoy them as much as I do (I also do some more tomorrow; it’s chanterelle season 🙂 ) Let me know how they turned out.
Not fair again!
With all the mushrooms we can get in Japan, Chanterelles are almost impossible unless you want to spend a fortune at a restaurant! LOL
Love them best in omelettes!
They don’t grow in Japan then… This is something I would also miss.
Actually they grow in Japan, but only in the far north!
I understand… You are lucky at least they exist!
Those tart must have tasted so delicious!
Thank you!
Wow, I don’t think I’d ever get tired of that combination either. The fresh marjoram sounds like the perfect pairing too.
Do try this one day (if you haven’t yet). Even fried chanterelles, mixed with goat cheese and grilled on a toast are divine!