Reeni, who writes one of my favorite blogs, Cinnamon, Spice, & Everything Nice, was recently musing about how side dishes are worthy of more attention, and I completely agree! Side dishes can be an afterthought and our regular rotation includes couscous, quinoa, brown rice, and sweet potatoes. How boring – it’s definitely time to mix things up! I brainstormed for a bit and finally decided to create a mushroom and cheese tart with a mashed potato crust.
Now I’m not one to normally use potato flakes, and have actually given my mom a really hard time about using them in the past, but I decided it would be important to be able to control the amount of the moisture in the pie crust, so I picked up a box. I mixed the flakes with water, butter, and salt, and then pushed them up the sides of a tart pan. Then I baked the crust until it was golden brown and filled it with layers mushrooms, garlic, leeks, and gruyere. I couldn’t resist topping it off with some crumbled goat cheese (surprise, surprise!). The tart was a hit and a lovely way to spice up our side dish rotation!
Mushroom Tart with a Mashed Potato Crust
Printable Recipe
Ingredients:
4 cups mashed potato flakes
2 1/2 cups water
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 leeks, white and light green parts only, chopped
24 ounces mushrooms, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups shredded gruyere cheese
4 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Mix potato flakes, water, butter, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a large bowl until smooth. Press dough into a 10-inch greased tart pan with a removable bottom and bake at 350˚F for 40 to 45 minutes or until potato crust is golden brown and cooked through. Push down with the back of a spoon, if needed.
Meanwhile, heat olive oil over medium high heat in a very large nonstick skillet. Add leeks and mushrooms to the pan and sauté 7 to 10 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and sauté one additional minute. Stir in remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt.
Heat oven broiler. Place half the mushroom mixture in the cooked potato tart crust, followed by the gruyere cheese, and remaining half of the mushroom mixture. Top evenly with crumbled goat cheese and rosemary. Broil for 2 to 5 minutes or until cheese is melted and tart is warmed through. Makes 8 servings.
Nutrition: 255 calories, 17.0g fat, 2.4g fiber, 11.7g protein per serving
Cost: $1.52 per serving