More spuds! And what’s not to like about putting carbs in carbs! Yea, a potato pie with carbs nestled in more carbs and nope, I don’t regret a thing. This is delicious. A little sweet from the caramelized onions, salty from the machego cheese, hearty from the potatoes. Can be served on it’s own as a brunch dish or an appetizer, or as your carbohydrate along with meat and a salad.
(PS: don’t have manchego cheese? Asiago or Parmesan will serve you just fine too!)
Ingredients
For the dough
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold
3-6 tablespoons ice cold water
For the filling
White wine caramelized onions (see below)
4 small (about 1 1/2 pounds) Yukon Gold potatoes sliced very thin
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/4 cups grated Manchego cheese
5 sprigs of thyme, leaves removed from stems
Salt and pepper
One egg, beaten
For the caramelized onions
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 small yellow onions, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon sugar
1/3 cup dry white wine
Salt to taste
Directions
Prepare your crust: In a bowl, combine the flour and salt. Cut in the butter, blending until the mixture resembles coarse sand (with some larger pieces of butter). Add in four or five tablespoons of the ice water, using a fork to mix the dough together. Add more water, one tablespoon at a time, just until the dough comes together in a slightly crumbly ball. Turn the dough out to a lightly floured surface. Use your hands to shape the dough into a flattened disc. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour (up to 24 hours).
Next, make your onions (takes about 45 minutes). Heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add in onions and stir frequently so they can brown but not burn. Adjust the heat as necessary. After about 20 minutes add sugar and season with a bit of salt. Continue cooking and stirring until onions are a deep golden brown. This can take about 45 minutes but they could go a little longer. When the onions have turned that nice deep golden tan, add in the wine, and cook for about 2-3 minutes, until the liquid has evaporated. Set aside to cool before assembling the tart.
To assemble the tart: Preheat oven to 400F. You can prepare it in a cast iron pan, a free-form version on a baking sheet or in a tart pan. I did the latter. Remove dough from refrigerator and with a lightly floured rolling pin, roll out dough into a somewhat circle-shape (doesn’t need to be perfect) about 1/4 inch thick. Nestle into the tart pan, leaving a little bit of overhang. Place about half of the onions in the bottom of the pan, and about half of the potato slices. Lightly season with salt and pepper and top with half of the cheese and thyme. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Follow with the rest of the potatoes, more salt and pepper, the remaining onions, cheese, thyme and olive oil. Brush the visible edge with egg wash, and bake for about 45-50 minutes until golden brown. Let cool for about 5-10 minutes before serving.
Can be served warm or at room temperature.
