Onion, stout and goat’s cheese tarts

SERVES 4

I like blue cheese. There are some magnificent goat’s and sheep’s blues around, but if you find them too strong, just use a plain goat’s cheese for these tarts, or even a good feta.

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 brown onions, sliced

1 red onion, sliced

150 g (5½ oz) fennel bulb, sliced

3 garlic cloves, finely sliced

180 g (6 oz) Swiss brown mushrooms, sliced

2 teaspoons raw (demerara) sugar

125 ml (4 fl oz/½ cup) stout

2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves

2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed

120 g (4¼ oz) blue goat’s cheese, such as Red Hill Mountain Goat Blue

1 free-range egg, beaten

ROCKET SALAD

125 g (4½ oz) rocket (arugula)

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Heat half the olive oil in a frying pan over medium–high heat. Add all the onion and stir-fry for a few minutes so it is well coated with the oil. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 30 minutes, stirring often. Remove the onion from the pan and keep warm.

Turn the heat up to medium, add the remaining olive oil and gently fry the fennel for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook gently for 10 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes, then add the sugar, stout and thyme and cook for another 5 minutes. Stir the onion back in, season well with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and continue to cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, 5–10 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F/Gas 6) and line two baking trays with baking paper. Lay the pastry sheets on a lightly floured work surface. (There’s nothing wrong with using ready-made puff pastry; nothing wrong with making your own either!) Cut away a strip 7 cm (2¾ inches) long from one side of each sheet – you will now have two rectangular shapes. Place on the baking trays. With a sharp knife, score an inside rectangle about 2 cm (¾ inch) in from the edge of the pastry, forming a border.

Divide the onion mixture evenly between the two pastry sheets, making sure it stays inside the scored area, leaving the border clean. Crumble the cheese over the onion mixture. Brush the borders with the beaten egg and bake for 12–15 minutes, or until the borders have risen and are a dark golden brown.

Meanwhile, put the rocket in a bowl and drizzle with the olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Add a sprinkle of salt and toss well to combine.

Cut each tart in half and enjoy with the rocket salad and a glass of stout.

Beer Notes

For this dish try a Coopers Best Extra Stout, or Mountain Goat Surefoot Stout – a lovely full-bodied and bitter stout