CRAB AND ASPARAGUS TART

Crab and Asparagus Tart image

A savory tart, its silky custard thickly studded with crab meat to pick up the sweetness of the wines, and asparagus to tame tropical fruit and citrus flavors with vegetal, mineral notes and a hint of bitterness, will make for a lovely lunch or a predinner snack. Come summer, some diced zucchini can replace the asparagus. It also delivers a kick, not in the filling but in the pastry. There's no heat from the subdued alcohol in the bottle. The cayenne in the crust makes up for it.

Provided by Florence Fabricant

Categories dinner, main course

Time 1h30m

Yield 6 to 8 servings

Number Of Ingredients 12

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Ingredients

1 1/4 cups flour, more for rolling
Salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
7 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon minced shallot
1/2 bunch medium asparagus, ends snapped, halved vertically and cut into 1-inch pieces
8 ounces lump crab meat
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon minced chervil
3/4 cup half-and-half
4 ounces soft goat cheese

Steps:

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Whisk flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt and cayenne in a bowl or blend in a food processor. Add 6 tablespoons of butter and cut in or pulse until size of peas. Beat 1 egg with 2 tablespoons ice water, scatter on flour mixture and mix with a fork or pulse until a dough can be gathered together. Add a little more water if needed. Form into a disk and roll on a lightly floured surface, then lay it into a 9-inch straight-sided tart pan.
Trim edges, line with foil and weight with pastry weights or dry beans. Bake 10 minutes, until it starts to look dry. Remove foil and weights and bake 10 to 15 minutes more, until lightly browned. Remove from oven. Reduce heat to 350 degrees.
Melt remaining butter in a skillet over medium heat, add shallot and cook 1 minute. Add asparagus and cook about 2 minutes, until they start to soften. Remove from heat. Fold in crab meat, lemon juice and chervil. Season with salt. Spread in pastry.
Whisk half-and-half and cheese until smooth. Beat in remaining eggs until well blended. Pour over crab and asparagus, place in oven and bake about 40 minutes, until set and lightly browned. Let cool 15 minutes, remove sides of pan and serve at once or cooled to room temperature.

Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 291, UnsaturatedFat 6 grams, Carbohydrate 17 grams, Fat 18 grams, Fiber 1 gram, Protein 14 grams, SaturatedFat 11 grams, Sodium 325 milligrams, Sugar 2 grams, TransFat 0 grams