Tapa of quail eggs on buckwheat tartlets
>> Wednesday, October 21, 2009
What an over-elaborate title. It sounds like Haute Cuisine and I tell you: it isn't. I'm just updating a very, very traditional Spanish dish, huevos al plato, meaning eggs cooked on a plate. But this time, instead of using chicken eggs on a plate or earthenware cazuela, I've reduced the size of the dish to make it a tapa and used quail eggs on a tartlet. Which means they are not huevos al plato, but huevos a la tartaleta... never mind, I'm not a purist. I hope you're not either...
Huevos al plato were a very typical dish at home when I was a child. Well, at least it was very typical among the household adults, because my sister and I wouldn't consent to trying something soooo very different, almost opposite, to the fried eggs and tomato sauce we loved... Now that I've become more mature (¿?) I thought it'd be a good idea to "revisit" this almost historical dish to turn it into a miniature plate, a two-bite-sized tapa. I don't believe I'm the first to do such a thing with huevos al plato, I'm sure it's been done before. But I don't give a damn. This time I chose to make the pastry dough with buckwheat for a change, you know I love to use less-common flours.
Quail eggs on buckwheat tartlets
Pastry dough:
Huevos al plato, per tartlet:
Start by making the pastry dough. I adapted my usual pastry dough recipe by substituting half the amount buckwheat flour for half all-purpose flour. Mix the flours and the salt and add the diced cold butter. Mix the butter in the flour either by rubbing with the tip of your fingers or with a mixer, till you obtain a sandy-crumbly mixture. Then add the cold water and knead by hand or with a mixer just until the water is thoroughly incorporated and the dough forms a ball. Don't overprocess. Butter and flour the molds you're going to use (mine are around 7cm in size). Roll out the dough to an approximate thickness of 2mm, and line the molds. Be careful as this dough is not as elastic as an all-wheat dough. Once the molds are lined I usually put them in the freezer for the dough to freeze lightly (small size tartlets freeze very quickly). This prevents the dough from bubbling when blank-baked, you don't even need to prick it with a fork. This trick works for me.
Preheat the oven to 180ºC. Blank-bake the tartlets for 10 minutes, enough for the dough surface to seal. Take the molds out and leave them to cool a little, so that you don't burn yourself. Lay the filling by spreading a teaspoon of tomato sauce on the base, then carefully crack one egg and lastly sprinkle the previously boiled peas and the Spanish jamón or chorizo, uncooked.
Put the filled molds into the oven. The tartlets don't need much time to get cooked, but it really depends on the oven; mine took around 10 minutes. The perfect outcome is a thoroughly hard white with a liquid yolk... but it's tricky to get with such small eggs. My eggs were hard all over, grrrr. I made a second batch where I separated the yolks (tricky stuff!) and put them aside, then cook the yolk-less tartlets, only to add the yolks for a final 2 minute cooking. Well, maybe you don't care about hard yolks, but I do. I prefer them liquid, so that their juices spread when you bite and drip down your chin... ahem... yum. Despite all imperfections, D. loved the tartlets... and me too... with a tasty red wine... they make for a very traditional appetizer. (Why is it that I almost always finish my posts with a drink?)
28 comentarios:
Lovely Miriam! Just one thing that's not fair at all, Spanish Jamon, you're making me so sad just thinking about it, lol!!
Lovely presentation again.
cute tartlets with great tasting ingredients
These are gorgeous! Makes me want to get some little tart pans just for something like this. Wow. Yum.
Those look almost too beautiful too eat. Almost.
Yum yum yum! I love anything with eggs and this looks like an amazing thing to try.
This reminds me of a dish my Portuguese grandmother would make all the time by braising peas with tomatoes and chorizo. I even blogged about it several years ago (http://messycook.blogspot.com/2006/08/just-like-grandma-used-to-make.html) I guess Spanish and Portuguese cuisines are very similar sometimes.
I just love how elegant it looks in tart form! I'm totally trying this out next time I need a nice appetizer for a party.
Simply stunning! So elegant and delicate!
that looks AMAZING! your tarts are perfect and this is such a cute idea. love it.
Gorgeous!
Your pictures are amazing!!!Your recipes are fantastic. I love your blog.
Wow, it's an eye opening for me! My very first time to learn such kind of awesome recipe. Thanks for sharing.
Diana: mmm, yes, Spanish ham... si always missed XD
Tasty Trix: thanks!
TasteHK: thanks!
Jessie: you should try them!
Tasty: yep, another kitchen gadget... ;-)
Rachelle: yeah, almost... XD
Peggy: yes, eggs are good in almost anything!
Polka: thanks!
Mardi: thanks!
Penny: it's easy for an appetizer!
Pink: thank youuu
Erica: thanks!!!!
My Little Space: so nice to hear that, thanks!
What an awesome idea!
These are the pretties tartletts ever! The photo is just gorgeous!
Congrats on a well deserved Top 9!
The buckwheat tartlet shells sound delicious, and they look lovely with the quail eggs!
I'd love to see this served at my local tapas restaurant!
Vera: thanks!
5 Star Foodie: it was the first time I used those cute pie molds!
Mardi: thank youuuuu!
Lisa: thanks!
Evie: thanks for dropping by!
Hi
Congrats on being Top 9 today. A very innovative recipe.
I've never seen anything like this and it looks spectacular! I really love the photo of the 4 stages of the tart-exquisite! Excellento!
This has got to be some of the most beautiful food I have ever seen.
How beautiful this looks!! And well, that title makes everyone curious as to what it is that has such a fancy title, so that is a good thing right? :) Beautiful photography!
Miriam,
Beautiful post. I bet the buckwheat added a lot of flavor to the eggs and ham... always good!
No-frills: thanks!
Rachel: thankssss!
MBCFM: thank you so much!
Junglefrog: you're right about the title... ;-)
Amber: thank youu!
This caught my eye because I have been looking for more ways to incorporate buckwheat. (Love it in pancakes and breakfast foods) Would never have thought about tartlets - very clever! And a very nice pic of them.
i love this... absolutely love this. the peas just add a great color to this dish. i could eat this with a simple salad for a perfect lunch!
Bread and Jam: thanks for visiting!
Amy and Jonny: thank youuuuu!
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