Bacon and Onion Tart

Jeff the Chef
Bacon and Onion Tart
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Bacon and Onion Tart

Recipe by Make It Like a Man!Course: Dinner, Appetizers
Makes

4

servings

Dough, filling, toppings … bake!

Ingredients

  • 1 sheet of frozen puff pastry

  • 1/2 lb. thick-sliced bacon

  • 1 medium onion, peeled, quartered, and sliced very thinly

  • 1/2 cup (5 oz.) cottage cheese

  • 1/2 cup (4.5 oz.) crème fraiche

  • 1 Tbs flour

  • 1/4 tsp salt

  • Black pepper, to taste

  • 1/8 tsp nutmeg

  • 2 Tbs olive oil

  • Thyme, for garnish

Directions

  • Place pastry onto a Silpat, and let it defrost on the countertop for no more than 40 minutes. Roll it out into a 1/8-inch-thick rectangle. Transfer the dough and the Silpat to a cookie sheet. Place it in the fridge.
  • Prepare the toppings: without separating the strips of bacon, slice through them widthwise to create 1/8-inch-wide matchsticks. Place the bacon into a large skillet over medium heat (setting 4 out of 9), and fry it, stirring almost constantly to separate the matchsticks, until it begins to render its fat, 1 minute. Add the onions and continue to cook and stir until they’ve softened, 3 minutes. Off heat. Push the onion mixture to one side of the pan and tilt the pan toward the empty end. Let it rest that way as the contents cool almost to room temperature and any liquid drains away from the onion mixture, at least 20 minutes.
  • Make the filling: with a food processor, process the cottage cheese until smooth, 30 seconds. Add the crème, flour, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and oil, and blend until smooth, a few seconds. Preheat the oven to 425°F.
  • Spread the filling across the pastry, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Spread the toppings over the filling. Bake until the top has browned, 45 minutes, rotating halfway through. Let rest for a couple of minutes, then transfer to a cutting board and cut into 8 pieces. Garnish with thyme and serve.

Notes

  • During assembly, it will seem like you have too much filling and topping. It’s the right amount.
"Bacon and Onion Tart," from Make It Like a Man!

This is so deliciously out of the ordinary. Very rich. Luscious, in fact. Umami on overdrive. When it’s warm, this tart is an experience that you don’t come by often. Time seems to stop, everything in your periphery seems to fade, and there’s nothing but you and that texture and those flavors. When it comes to room temperature, it’s a bit less of an out-of-body experience, but you taste the component flavors more acutely.

Social Learning

This tarte is traditionally called Tarte Flambée. It’s Alsatian. You don’t light it one fire, though. At least, not on purpose. Go figure.

You might as well make two of these tarts. All you’ll need is probably an extra onion. Everything else you bought for the first one, you probably have enough of it left over to make a second one. Keep one in the fridge, fully assembled, and bake it later. Or, bake them together on separate racks, switching racks halfway through.

I say this makes four servings, thinking one person will eat two pieces. One piece would be a fantastic and satisfying little snack. Two would be perfect as one course in a short series of dishes that were otherwise on the lighter side.

If you’re going to heat up leftovers, you absolutely must try the “frying-pan, pizza-reheating” method. Four minutes under an aluminum foil dome in a preheated pan will do the trick. Stay near to the pan and pay attention to the aroma. If the bottom starts to get too dark, you’ll smell it before it actually goes too far.

This tart is about as flexible as pizza in terms of toppings. I’ve added julienned red peppers to the onions on occasion. It’s pretty. I’m not sure you taste the peppers as much as you see them, but they do make the tart seem less oniony – which makes it sound like the tart without the peppers is too oniony, but that’s not true. Speaking of onion, a Vidalia is a good choice for this tart, but so is a yellow onion. I’ve also added cooked spinach to this tart: also pretty.

OK, so how do you tilt a hot pan for a long period of time? The grate on my stovetop is a good inch or so higher than my countertop, so I place a non-slip, silicone trivet on the countertop, and position the pan halfway over the grate and the trivet. I’m sure you could do this in countless other ways.

The Backstory

The tart in these photos doesn’t have the thyme garnish. It’s adds a lot to the look, so I do recommend it.

"Bacon and Onion Tart," from Make It Like a Man!
Bacon and Onion Tart

Credit for images on this page: Make It Like a Man! unless otherwise credited. This content was not solicited by anyone, nor was it written in exchange for anything. Thank you, Kesor. References: Andrée Soltner, “Tarte Flambée,” in Cooking with Master Chefs, ed. Julia Child. (New York: Knopf, 1993), 29-31. Also Martha and NYT. Make It Like a Man! is ranked by Feedspot as #14 in the Top 30 Men’s Cooking Blogs.

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52 thoughts on “Bacon and Onion Tart”

  1. Tarte flambée one of my favorite Alsatian dishes — great recipe and the photos make me want to chew my iPad. Definitely something to make this year!

    Reply

  3. Great way to use puff pastry. I’ve used frozen bread dough but it makes a chewy crust. Thyme is a versatile herb and a favorite – I just used it to season roasted veggies. I stocked up on puff pastry this year (I have 3 packages left) so I am sure I will try your recipe. Out of 3 varieties (Dufour, Pepperidge Farm and Trader Joes) I really like Trader Joes. Good price, buttery but available in season only!

    Reply

    • Oh, nice to know about Trader Joe. I like their frozen pie crust, too. Thanks!

      Reply

  10. Puff pastry is so versatile, I always keep two packages in the freezer. I loved Trader Joe’s puff pastry while we were in Arizona, in Canada I use President’s Choice because it’s all butter too. The toppings sound fabulous too.
    Wishing you and yours a happy and healthy new year.

    Reply

  11. Nice, Jeff! I happen to have some bacon in the fridge that I’d bought for another purpose and we hardly ever eat it in this house. This looks like a fabulous way to use the rest. Puff pastry, bacon and cheese… how could you possibly go wrong with that combination, amirite?

    Reply

  16. I’ve got a sheet of frozen puff pastry in the freezer left over from the pie I made for New Year. I was wondering what to do with it Jeff and now you’ve given me inspiration! This looks delicious. Thank you and Happy New Year to you!
    Neil recently posted…Pesto Chicken Broccoli Pasta

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  19. We had a version of this tart on a Rhine river cruise….the recipe they provided wasn’t nearly as complete as yours. I can’t wait to give it a try!!!
    Liz recently posted…Meyer Lemon Bars

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  21. I love savory tarts — especially with puff pastry. And it goes without saying that bacon + onion is dreamy. 😀 ~Valentina

    Reply

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