Potato Tourte
Makes 6 main-course or 12 starter servings
A tourte is France’s answer to our double-crusted pie, and if there were a beauty pageant for tourtes, I’d enter this one and expect it to win. It’s gorgeous. And it’s gorgeous even if you don’t come to it with tourte-making experience — that’s the magic of puff pastry baked in a pan. I build the tourte in a fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. You could make this in an all-American pie plate, but it’s so beautiful that I think you’ll want to serve it freestanding, and the tart pan makes that easy.
This very French tourte is filled with sliced potatoes, onions, garlic and herbs. After it’s been baked to a lovely shade of bronze, you pour heavy cream into it, bake it some more and then allow it a short rest, so that the cream can be thoroughly absorbed by the already rich and tasty taters. The result is splendid enough to have you putting your fingers to your lips and kissing them in a gesture you’d have thought only a true French person could carry off.
a word on timing
As tempting as it is to cut into the tourte as soon as it comes from the oven, don’t! It has to sit for half an hour, because the cream needs time to “set,” and besides, this is a dish that tastes better tepid. In fact, it’s wonderful at room temperature, making it possible to enjoy it at any point in a meal — it can be a starter, a main or a side dish — and a picnic too.
and a word on the herbs
There is hardly an herb that doesn’t go well with potatoes, but I’m particularly fond of parsley, tarragon, dill and chives. And then there are the classics: rosemary and sage. If you’re lucky enough to find or grow chervil, snip it into the mix.
- Enough ready-to-use puff pastry, preferably all-butter, to make a double-crusted 9-inch pie
- ½ lemon
- About ½ cup (20 grams) chopped fresh herbs (see headnote)
- 1 large spring onion or 1 bunch scallions, white and light green parts only, chopped
- 1¾ to 2 pounds (794 to 907 grams) Yukon Gold potatoes
- Fine sea salt and freshly ground pepper
- 2 garlic cloves, germ removed (see sidebar) and sliced paper-thin
- 4 tablespoons (2 ounces; 57 grams) unsalted butter, cut into bits
- 1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten with 1 teaspoon cold water
- 1 cup (240 ml) heavy cream
Working Ahead
The easiest way to construct this pie — and it is a construction project — is to get all of the components ready. Have one circle of puff pastry rolled out and fitted into the tart pan; have the other rolled out and covered in the refrigerator. Have the sliced potatoes rinsed and drying between cloth or paper towels, and the onion or scallions, herbs and lemon zest in a bowl. Slice the garlic and cut the butter into bits, ready to scatter. Then you can just layer the elements and finish the tourte with its top crust. You can wrap the tourte airtight and refrigerate it for up to 6 hours or freeze it for up to 1 month. Defrost it, still wrapped, in the refrigerator and then bake.
Position a rack in the lowest part of the oven and preheat it to 400 degrees F. Butter a 9-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom or a 9-inch pie plate. Place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, a silicone mat or foil.
You need 2 sheets of pastry, so if necessary, cut the packet in half. Roll each piece on a lightly floured surface into a circle: Ideally, one circle should be between 11 and 13 inches (the bottom of the tourte) and the other should be between 11 and 12 inches (the top). Fit the large circle of dough into the pan, pressing it lightly over the bottom of the pan and up the sides; allow the excess dough to hang over the edges. Prick the bottom of the dough all over with a fork, cover and slide the pan into the refrigerator. Slide the top circle onto a baking sheet, cover and chill it as well.
Using a vegetable peeler, remove the zest from the half lemon. If there’s white pith on the back of any of the pieces, use a paring knife to remove it. Slice the zest into the thinnest strands you can and then cut the strands crosswise in half. Alternatively, if you have a zester that makes strands (if you make cocktails, you might have this tool), use it, then cut the strands into shorter lengths.
Put the zest in a bowl, add the herbs and onion or scallions and toss with your hands to mix.
Peel the potatoes and, using a mandoline (such as a Benriner) or a knife, cut them into thin slices. The slices should be about 1⁄16 inch thick — substantial enough to stand up straight when you hold them, but thin enough to be supple. If your potatoes are large, cut them lengthwise in half before you slice them. As you cut the potatoes, toss the slices into a bowl of cold water.
Drain the potatoes and dry them well (I pat them dry between kitchen towels).
Remove the pastry from the fridge. Sprinkle one third of the herb mix over the bottom crust and season with salt and pepper. Place half of the potato slices over the herbs, spreading them out so that you get a reasonably even layer. Top with half of the garlic slivers and half of the remaining herb mix, then scatter over half of the butter bits and season with salt and pepper. Finish the filling with the rest of the potatoes, garlic, herbs and butter; season with salt and pepper.
Moisten the edge of the crust with cold water and place the top crust over the filling. Gently press the top and bottom overhang together to seal. Using scissors or a knife, cut away the excess dough, leaving ½ to 1 inch of overhang. Roll the overhang over on itself until it forms a rim just inside the tart pan’s rim. Using a sharp cookie cutter, a metal piping tip or scissors, cut an air vent in the center of the top crust; the vent in the photo was made by cutting an X in the center and folding back the points. (You can make the tourte to this point and cover and refrigerate it for up to 6 hours or freeze it for up to 1 month.)
Brush the egg glaze over the crust, taking care not to let it drip down the sides — drips will glue the pastry’s layers together and keep them from puffing to their max. Bake the tourte for 45 to 60 minutes, until a small knife or bamboo skewer poked through the center hole meets limited resistance; if at any point the tourte looks as though it’s getting too brown (or soon will), cover the top loosely with a foil tent.
Remove the tourte from the oven; leave the oven on. Pour the cream into a microwave-safe container, cover and heat until it’s just warm to the touch (or do this in a small pan on the stove).
If you can pour the cream into the tourte through the vent hole, do it. If not, using a sharp paring knife, cut a circle about 6 inches in diameter (use a plate as a guide) in the center of the top crust. Working gingerly, remove the circle, transferring it to a plate with the help of a wide spatula. Very slowly pour the warm cream over the potatoes — give it a chance to seep down through the potatoes before you add much more. If it looks as though the cream will overflow the crust, stop. (It’s hard to give an exact amount here.) Carefully replace the crust circle, if you removed it, pressing it down gently to get a snug fit.
Return the tourte to the oven and bake for another 30 minutes, until the potatoes are tender, keeping the tourte tented if necessary. The cream will bubble and it may come through the vent or the seam where the circle was cut, and that’s fine. Transfer the tourte, on the baking sheet, to a rack and let sit for at least 30 minutes before serving.
The tourte can be served warm or at room temperature.
Storing: The tourte is best eaten the day it is made; however, leftovers will keep, covered, for 1 day in the refrigerator. Allow the tourte to come to room temperature and then, if you’d like, reheat it in a 350-degree-F oven for about 15 minutes.
