RECIPE DEVELOPED BY:
Luzaan van Heerden – ICA 3rd-year student, specialising in Media Communication
STYLING & PHOTOGRAPHY:
Luzaan van Heerden – ICA 3rd-year student, specialising in Media Communication
Mushroom and Ricotta Tart with MannaBrew-pickled Shimeji
Serves 6-8
Difficulty: MODERATE, Preparation time: 30 minutes + 2 hours refrigeration time, Cooking time: 40 minutes
INGREDIENTS
PASTRY
- 100 g cake flour
- 20 ml (4 tsp) MannaBrew Organc Mesquite Flour
- 30 ml (2 tbsp) Parmesan cheese, finely grated
- 75 g salted butter, cold and cubed
- 30 ml (2 tbsp) ice water
PICKLED MUSHROOMS
- 250 ml (1 cup) MannaBrew Superfood Espresso, strongly brewed
- 125 ml (½ cup) red wine vinegar
- 125 ml (½ cup) red wine
- 125 g granulated sugar
- 5 black peppercorns
- 1 bay leaf
- pinch salt
- 150 g shimeji mushrooms
MUSHROOM RAGOUT
- 15 ml (1 tbsp) vegetable oil
- 250 g brown mushrooms, sliced
- 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
- 125 ml (½ cup) vegetable stock
- 125 ml (½ cup) MannaBrew Superfood Espresso, strong brewed
- 15 ml (1 tbsp) parsley, finely chopped
RICOTTA FILLING
- 120 g ricotta
- 60 ml (¼ cup) cream cheese, room temperature
- 125 ml (½ cup) Parmesan cheese, finely grated
- 1 small lemon, zested and juiced
- salt and pepper, to season
TO SERVE
- handful of rocket
- handful of edible flowers (optional)
METHOD
- For the pastry, combine the cake flour, mesquite flour and Parmesan cheese in a food processor. Add the cold butter and pulse to combine. Pulse until it resembles the texture of coarse breadcrumbs.
- Add the ice water and pulse to combine.
- Using your hands, form the pastry into a disc. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- For the pickled mushrooms, combine the MannaBrew Superfood Espresso, red wine vinegar, red wine, sugar, peppercorns, bay leaf and salt in a saucepan and heat until the sugar has melted.
- Pour the warm mixture over the shimeji mushrooms, cover and set aside to pickle for at least 1 hour or overnight.
- For the mushroom ragout, heat the oil in a pan over high heat. Add the mushrooms and fry for 5 minutes. Add the garlic, stock and MannaBrew Superfood Espresso and simmer until thickened, 8-10 minutes. Stir in the parsley and set aside.
- For the ricotta filling, combine the ricotta, cream cheese, Parmesan, lemon zest and lemon juice. Stir until smooth and season to taste. Refrigerate until needed.
- To make the tart case, roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface until 5mm thick.
- Line a 20cm loose-bottom quiche tin with the pastry and prick the base a few times with a fork. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 170°C.
- Blind bake the tart case for 15-20 minutes and allow to cool.
- To assemble the tart, spread the ricotta filling over the cooled pastry. Top with the mushroom ragout and pickled mushrooms. Scatter rocket leaves on top and garnish with edible flowers if using.
TIP: For easy blind baking, place a sheet of baking paper over the lined pastry case. Fill with raw rice or beans and bake until the pastry edges are golden brown.
