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This recipe is coming up on an episode of Fresh to Flavorful.
Onion Tarte with Wilted Garlic Arugula
Two thawed sheets of puff pastry at room temperature
4 bacon slices (1/4 lb), cut crosswise into 1/8- to 1/16-inch-wide strips
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 lb onions, halved lengthwise and very thinly sliced crosswise
2 leeks, White parts only, trimmed, thinly sliced and cleaned to remove any sand or grit
8 oz cream cheese
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 egg beaten
8 oz fresh baby arugula
2 cloves garlic, finely minced or grated
3 Tablespoons olive oil
sea salt
freshly cracked black pepper
Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer bacon to a paper towel lined plate to drain and pour off all but a couple of tablespoons of the bacon fat. Add butter to the skillet and cook onions and leeks with 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper over moderate heat, stirring, until just wilted, about 2 minutes. Cover skillet and continue to cook, stirring frequently until onions are very soft and golden, about 20 minutes. Stir in bacon, then remove from heat and cool 10 minutes.
Add cream cheese, nutmeg, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon pepper to onions. Stir until cheese is melted and well combined.

Roll out each sheet of dough to 1/8” thick in a rectangular shape. Place dough on silicone lined baking sheet. Mound half of the cheese and onion mixture in the center of each rectangle of dough. Spread evenly, leaving a 2 inch perimeter of dough around the edge. Gently Fold the edges of the dough up over the filling and pinch folds to secure. Brush with egg wash. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.
Cool until the filling has set, 15 minutes.

In a medium bowl mix the garlic and olive oil. Add the arugula and toss until well coated. Season with salt and pepper. Mound half of the garlic arugula on top of each of the warm tartes. The heat will wilt the arugula and allow the garlic oil to permeate the top of the tarte.
Slice each tarte into six pieces. Serve warm.
Savor. Linger. Enjoy! -Cynthia

Sweet-and-Sour German Potato Salad

Sweet-and-Sour German Potato Salad
I was up to Morse's Sauerkraut last weekend and had lunch with my sweetheart. We shared a reuben and some deep fried kraut balls. The dessert special was pannecotta with a sour cherry sauce. What a delicious treat! We try to get up to their shop whenever we can and fitting a meal into the trip makes it all worthwhile. Their sauerkraut is the best in the world. The folks who work in both the shop and bistro are knowledgeable and friendly. Definitely go when you are hungry. Stop by the cheese counter and sample some tasty nibbles. Let them take you on a tour around the world. You'll be glad you went.
My mom used to make this warm and tangy potato salad, always delicious with grilled bratwurst or any kind of barbecue. Both sweet and salty, it holds its own alongside other flavorful foods. The hearty potato soaks up the wonderful dressing, so be sure you serve it right away. If you need to wait before serving- make up an extra batch of the warm dressing and drizzle it over the top before you eat. We are fortunate that there are several local sources for bacon and sauerkraut along the coast of Maine. Contact your neighborhood natural food store to find some in your home town.
Serves 6-8
Salad:
6 large Maine potatoes
1 large Vidalia onion
1 cup Morse’s Sauerkraut, roughly chopped
Dressing:
1 lb thick cut bacon, diced
3⁄4 c yellow onion, finely chopped
3 T flour
1⁄2 c white vinegar or sauerkraut liquor
3⁄4 c water
1 T celery seeds
3 T sugar
11⁄2 t salt
1 t fresh ground black pepper

Wash and trim the potatoes and Vidalia onion, peeling the potatoes if you like. Cut the potatoes and onion into quarters.
In a large saucepan, boil the potatoes and onion until the potatoes are fork-tender, but not mushy. When the potatoes and onion are cool enough to handle, chop them into bite-size pieces.
In a large pan, fry bacon till crisp. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towel; crumble and set aside.
Add the 3⁄4 c yellow onion to bacon fat in pan and cook 5 to 8 minutes, till onion is soft. With a slotted spoon, remove onion and set aside with the bacon.
Whisk flour into bacon fat. Add the vinegar or sauerkraut liquor, water, celery seeds, sugar, salt, and pepper. Heat to a boil; then, set pan on medium heat and cook till thickened.
Add potatoes, Morse’s sauerkraut, cooked Vidalia onion, bacon, and sautéed yellow onion. Gently stir to coat the potatoes.
Serve while warm.

BBQ and Lindy-Hop in Beantown

I'm giving you several recipes today as I will be off to Beantown Camp this weekend. The Lindy Hop workshops will feature instructors from across the globe. We'll be dancing our feet off!
Hope your weekend is filled with cook-outs and frisbee!

Hot Onion Barbecue Sauce
1 medium onion, chopped
1/4 cup water
2 Tbsp butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup tomato puree
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
2 Tablespoons cider vinegar
2 teaspoons Tabasco sauce
1 Tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dry mustard

In a food processor, puree the onion and 1/4 cup water until completely smooth.
Melt butter in saucepan. Cook onion mixture and garlic 4 minutes. Add remaining
ingredients and bring to boil. Store in a tightly sealed container. Chill until ready to use

Quickie Weeknight Nachos

Tonight was a night for food fast. This is a great example of how to make things work without going the "fastfood" route. Here is my slow food version of a quickie meal. You can choose to serve up the meat and toppings in a soft tortilla instead of over chips for tacos or roll up the meat, with a layer of refried beans, top with the cheese and bake a while for another burrito style version. Pickled jalapenos are a great addition. Here, as always, adapt the recipe to your taste- add a little more of this, a little less of that. Whatever tastes good to you and your family. Keep in mind that you want your dinner to be healthy...then go for the gusto!

Quickie Weeknight Nachos
You can have your dinner on the table in 20 minutes.
1 lb lean ground turkey
1 sweet onion- sliced or minced
1 T olive oil
1 clove garlic- minced
3/4 c salsa- we used black bean and corn
1 t or more chili powder
juice of half a lime
Tortilla chips
shredded cheese
avocado- peeled, pitted and coarsely chopped or sliced- spritzed with the juice of half a lime
lettuce- chopped or torn into bite sized pieces
1 fresh tomato- chopped
more salsa
crushed red pepper flakes

Heat the oil in a skillet. Add the onions and turkey. Cook until the turkey is completely done, breaking up the meat with your spatula into smaller than bite sized pieces. Add the garlic, salsa, chili powder and lime juice. If you like your nachos spicy- add more chili powder or red pepper flakes. We placed our chips on a sheet pan and heated them in a 300 degree oven while the meat was cooking. Pile the chips onto an individual or serving plate. Top with the meat and shredded cheese. At this point you can heat them again in the oven to melt the cheese or you can just let the heat from the meat and chips melt the cheese. Just before serving top with slices or chunks of fresh avocado, lettuce, more salsa and whatever else you like on your Nachos. We sometimes sprinkle the top with cooked black beans, adzuki beans or add a dollop of sour cream. Mmmm! Soo gooood!