Once Upon A Tart

How could I resist this book? It hooked me in from the title...Once Upon a Tart I mean...how could it miss? And, if you're like me and afraid of making your own tarts, there are lots of other delicious dishes to slowly work your way up to it.

But let me back up a bit. Years ago, before it was trendy, two enterprising men - Frank Mentesana and Jerome Audureau, joined forces and decided to open a bake shop and cafe...tarts being hard to find in NYC then. Right from the beginning, it was a hit with line ups for lots of wonderful goodies, but mostly for their awesome tarts -savory or sweet...or both. Anyway, now there's yet another reason to visit NYC. The cafe is at 135 Sullivan Street...just in case you're in the neighborhood.

That said, until I get there in person, I'm glad I found the book which is filled with not only superb tarts but soups (doesn't Chickpea & Tomato Soup with Fresh Rosemary sound divine?); sandwiches (chicken & mashed avocado with radish sprouts & soy ginger vinaigrette are on tap for the weekend-or perhaps the goat cheese with marinated artichoke hearts & black olive vinaigrette on a sourdough baguette); salads (you'll never think of 3 bean salad the same...this one has honey-balsamic vinaigrette!); scones ( I did try the buttermilk & Dried Currants scones exactly as said...yum); cookies; condiments....and, of course...tarts!!!

Savory

Roasted Potato Tart with Herbs, Mushrooms & Melted Gruyere

Total Heaven on a plate, even if I did cheat a bit and did the entire mixing process in my food processor.

Sweet

Alsatian Apple Custard Tart

Seriously...look how pretty that is. I should have paid more attention and removed the tart from the outer rim before brushing with glaze..some of the shell stuck so it wasn't as pretty as could be. That said, there wasn't much left over either. The neighbors gladly got the last of it this morning.

Buttermilk & Dried Currant Scones

Not sure what I'll do next, but this is a book I'll refer to often.