Frenchify Your Weekend with This Sweet and Savory Fig Tart

Low-Effort Deliciousness, Plus My Next Journey Is Making Me Nervous

Salut mes chères et mes chers (Hi there my dears),

Last week’s newsletter prompted such a thoughtful response and so much good advice.

Un grand merci to each of you who took the time to read, comment and share support and strategies for embracing and honoring our feelings no matter where we are. Also, I loved last week’s poll results. If you want to see them (or vote yourself), click here and then scroll down to the poll.

Cooking Good Food Is Therapy

Last week I also mentioned that when I feel blue, cooking often helps. So, what do you know? When Monsieur B had a home office day this week, I whipped up a delicious and very easy sweet and savory tart for our lunch that is perfect for this in-between season. So I thought I’d share that this week. Scroll on down for the recipe—it’s also very versatile and looks très joli on the table.

Do you have good fresh figs where you are? I’m having a moment with them!

Fun French Fig Fact: What do you call a fig farmer in French?

“Un figuiculteur” (ehn-fee-gee-cyul-TUHR)

The Journey That Is Making Me Nervous

Bientôt je vais voyager au sud de la France (Soon I’ll be traveling to the south of France), alone this time, to participate in a women’s retreat with a central theme of joy. I know, right? What’s to be nervous about?

We’ll be staying in a lovely villa and soaking up the softer autumn Provençal sunlight, going to des marchés et des brocantes (markets and flea markets) and visiting some of the most beautiful villages in France, including Gordes. This type of flânerie (wandering) paired with some laughter and good rest is perfectly aligned with everything I love, and I’m very lucky.

The retreat will last just a few days, but as an extroverted-introvert who generally works alone, I’m a little apprehensive about keeping up my energy throughout the experience, and about doing something that may seem a bit extravagant “just for me.” I will also miss my dear husband who is my favorite companion in travel and in life.

The thing is, I believe so strongly in self-care (and even self-pampering) and getting out of our comfort zones to help us live more creatively, to help us grow. I just know this adventure will be transformational in some way, and I’m grateful to have the time and space to take this journey for myself when I really need it.

More to come on that soon!

What was the last thing you did in the name of self-care?

Sweet and Savory Fig Tart With Goat Cheese, Onions and Bacon

Tarte “Sucrée-Salée” aux Figues et au Fromage de Chèvre

Serves 4 or makes 12 smaller bites as a perfect apéro offering

15 minutes prep, 20-30 minutes in the oven

INGREDIENTS

• 3-4 plump fresh Figs, cut into eighths

  • If you can’t get fresh figs, you can just layer a bit more fig jam. The point is to get a little sweetness with the cheese and the (optional) salty bacon

• 1 log of Goat Cheese (approx 100 grams), sliced into 12 rounds

  • Feta also works great as would grated Gruyère or even a crumbled Roquefort or Bleu d’Auvergne

• 4 strips of Bacon, cut into small pieces (optional)

  • This tart is delicious even without bacon. You can substitute pancetta, lardons, or vegan crumbles

• 2 medium Yellow Onions, halved and sliced

• 3 Tbs Fig Preserves

  • you can substitute apricot or bitter orange or another favorite jam or even honey

• 1 store-bought Puff Pastry sheet

• 1 Egg Yolk, beaten (optional)

  • for brushing on the edges to create a more golden crust

• 2 tsp herbes de Provence

PREPARATION

STEP ONE
Preheat your oven following your puff pastry packaging instructions (generally between 180-200 Celsius/375-400 Farenheit)

STEP TWO
Prepare your mise en place. This means to get all the ingredients ready to layer. It’ll make the tart assembly beaucoup plus facile so much easier. Slice and chop everything and put each ingredient in small bowls or ramekins. Tac-tac-tac ! T’es un vrai chef. (Now you’re a real chef.)

In a medium skillet, start by sautéing the bacon (if using). Also note that the French don’t ever use the verb “sauter” for cooking, so this instruction will make my husband laugh. Anyway, don’t overcook the bacon—just get it started and then it will crisp up in the oven. Set the bacon aside. Then sweat the onions in the bacon fat (or a drizzle of olive oil), letting them soften and caramelize just a bit, and set them aside. They’ll also keep cooking once they’re in the oven.

If you want to know how to describe the action of sautéing in French (or if you already know how), leave a comment. Because we love LOVE the comments!

STEP THREE
When all your ingredients are ready, unroll the puff pastry sheet and lay it out on parchment paper atop a baking tray. Run a knife along the four edges of the puff pastry—this will create an outer crust that will keep anything from leaking out, and will look pretty. Use a spoon to spread the fig jam, avoiding the outer crust. Brush the outer crust with the beaten egg yolk (optional) for a more golden finish.

Don't forget to poke your puff pastry and run a knife along the inside edges to create a crust. I sometimes also roll mine a bit to give it a more rustic feel.

STEP FOUR
Layer your ingredients atop the tart in this order. Onions, goat cheese rounds, fig slices, bacon. Finish with a sprinkle of herbes de Provence. If you’re not using bacon, add a little coarse or flaky salt.

STEP FIVE
Bake the tart according to the puff pastry package instructions, and keep an eye on it as ovens tend to vary. My puff pastry instructions said 30 mins but the tart was perfect at 25 mins.

Golden brown, crispy, flaky, surprisingly light and really delish!

STEP SIX
Slice the tart using a pizza roller and serve with a simple salad of arugula for lunch or dinner, or cut up smaller squares and serve alongside your favorite apéro.

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Thanks again for being here. It means a lot.

Un excellent week-end a vous tous !

Karen