Recipe: Red onion tarte tatin with goat's cheese

Serves 4

Preparation time: 25 minutes plus 30 minutes chilling
Cooking time: 1 hour

375g ready-made puff pastry
Plain flour, for dusting
200g caster sugar
1/2 tsp lemon juice
4 thyme sprigs
6 red onions, peeled, root trimmed to the level of the base and cut into quarters
1 egg, lightly beaten
100g soft goat's cheese log, rind removed
1tsp black onion seeds
4 handfuls of pea shoots
1tbs extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured work surface and cut into four discs, each about 20cm in diameter. Put the pastry on a baking sheet, cover with cling film and chill in the fridge for 25-30 minutes to prevent the pastry shrinking during baking.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 160°C. Melt the sugar, lemon juice and 80ml of water in a non-stick frying pan over a low heat. Increase the heat to medium and cook for 10-12 minutes until it turns a rich golden brown.

Divide into four 15cm non-stick cake tins or ovenproof dishes. Put a thyme sprig in the centre of each tin, then put the red onion quarters, rounded-side down, into the caramel; there should be six quarters in each pan. Bake for 20 minutes then remove from the oven and turn the oven up to 190°C.

Take the pastry out of the fridge and quickly and carefully put the pastry over the top of the onions, pushing the edges down into the sides of the dishes. Brush the tops with the egg wash. This needs to be done really quickly as the pastry will start to melt if you take too long. Sprinkle a little sea salt over the top, then return it to the oven and bake for a further 20-25 minutes until the pastry is golden brown and crisp.

Remove the tarts from the oven and leave to cool. Put an upside-down plate the size of the dish on top of the first tart and, holding both the plate and dish, flip it over to unmould the tart onto the plate. Crumble the goats' cheese over the top of the tart and sprinkle with the black onion seeds. Repeat with the remaining tarts.

Toss the pea shoots with the extra virgin olive oil in a small bowl, then season with salt and pepper. Serve the tarts as the cheese just starts to melt, with the pea shoot salad served separately.

Recipe taken from Revolutionary French Cooking by Daniel Galmiche, reviewed here