Mushroom Tarte Tatin with Chanterelles

An intriguing dish, interesting in flavor and a little out of the ordinary. Pairing mushrooms with caramel seems a bit strange, even crazy, but it turns out this dish can taste good, really good.

I'm not sure I would have picked this dish myself while browsing recipes. But thanks to my forum friends and to Bajaderka, who shared this recipe, I dared to try it, and I don't regret it.

The original recipe calls for mixed wild mushrooms. I didn't have access to those, so I used chanterelles. You can also use white button mushrooms. I recommend using white vinegar, because it's less sweet than the red balsamic that I used.

Mushroom Tarte Tatin with Chanterelles

These tarts can be served as a main dish on their own or as a side dish with meat. They taste great both warm and cold.

Instructions:

Cut the onions into thin strips. Heat the oil in a skillet and add the onions. Add salt and cook over low heat, stirring, until the onions caramelize. They shouldn't brown too much, just take on a brown color. They should turn translucent and release their juices.

Clean the mushrooms and slice them.

Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F).

Wrap the shallots and garlic in aluminum foil (drizzle the garlic with olive oil first), place on a baking sheet and bake for about 15 minutes. While they're still warm, peel the shallots and cut them into thin slices, and squeeze the garlic out of its skins.

Heat the olive oil in a skillet, add the mushrooms and sauté them for 2 minutes. It's important not to put too many mushrooms in the skillet at once. They should just lightly cover the bottom of the pan. Otherwise, cook them in batches. Add the thyme, oregano and garlic, stir and cook for another 2 minutes. Season with the remaining herbs, plus salt and pepper.

Increase the oven temperature to 225°C (435°F). In a small saucepan, mix the sugar with the tablespoon of water and heat, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. The sugar should turn a caramel color. At that point add the vinegar and take the mixture off the heat.

Divide the caramel evenly among the 4 ramekins, then add the mushrooms, then the caramelized onions, and finally a layer of shallots.

Cut circles out of the puff pastry the size of the ramekins and cover the ramekins with them (I pressed the pastry onto the edges of the ramekins). Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown.

Once baked, turn the tarts out onto plates by flipping the ramekins upside down (so that the pastry ends up on the bottom) and, if you like, top with a dollop of crème fraîche.
Enjoy!

Author: Michael Allemeier, chef Source