Asparagus, Goat Cheese and Tarragon Tart

I love to eat produce in season, and to me, Spring is synonymous with asparagus. This asparagus, goat cheese and tarragon tart showcases fresh asparagus in all of its green glory. It's delicious, gorgeous to look at and can be assembled ahead of time. Basically, it’s the perfect company dish. The tart is quite versatile too. I’ve served wedges of this tart as hors d’oeuvres with cocktails and also as a main course with a salad. It is perfect as a brunch dish as well (with a glass of bubbly of course!) I adapted this from a Melissa Clark recipe in the New York Times.

This Asparagus, Goat Cheese and Tarragon Tart is perhaps a little more rich and decadent than most recipes on The Portion Queen. Make it healthier by serving smaller portions of the tart with a big green salad like this Arugula Fennel Salad with Pommery Mustard Vinaigrette. Or perhaps a salad that is as beautiful as this tart, such as this Citrus Salad with Avocado, Mint and Pistachio.

Ingredients for Asparagus, Goat Cheese and Tarragon Tart

Like many dishes, how good this Asparagus, Goat Cheese and Tarragon Tart turns out is largely dependent on quality of the ingredients that you start with. Choose very fresh asparagus, with stalks that are not too fat and not too skinny. Your grocer should display asparagus bunches standing up in cold, fresh water, not packaged in plastic on a shelf. The stalks should be plump, not wrinkled and the buds at the tip should be tightly closed.

Use all butter Dufour Pastry Kitchen Classic Puff Pastry. Not only is it the best tasting puff pastry I’ve tried, but it is also the perfect size for this tart, so no rolling out is required. Simply unfold it onto your parchment-lined baking sheet, score a border with a knife and top the tart with ingredients. Don’t be tempted to leave out the tarragon. It is the perfect herb for this dish and is worth seeking out.

• fresh goat cheese (chèvre)
• egg, lightly beaten
• garlic clove minced or run through a press
• fresh tarragon leaves 
• lemon zest
• fine sea salt
• freshly grated nutmeg
• creme fraiche
• Dufour's all butter puff pastry, thawed
• asparagus, trimmed to equal lengths 
• extra virgin olive oil
• grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for drizzling 
• flaky sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• crushed red pepper flakes
• Parmesan cheese shaved with a vegetable peeler

See recipe card for quantities.

Instructions for Asparagus, Goat Cheese and Tarragon Tart (see video below)

Prep your ingredients:

Preheat your oven to 425º. Now, prep your asparagus. The wooden and stringy ends need to be well trimmed. Neither you nor your guests want to be discretely spitting out unchewable bits of the end of the asparagus onto their plates! I usually trim asparagus by breaking off the end where it easily and cleanly breaks. For this recipe, though, the tart looks most beautiful when the stalks are all roughly the same length. I simply line up the asparagus tips in a single layer on a cutting board and cut the ends off above any white or woody looking areas. 

In a medium bowl, mash the goat cheese, egg, garlic, tarragon, lemon zest, salt and nutmeg with a silicone or wooden spoon. You probably won't get a perfectly smooth mixture during this step, but that's ok. Add the creme fraiche to the bowl and use a whisk to beat the mixture. You want to make sure you have a smooth mixture by the end of this step, without any lumps of goat cheese visible in the mixture.

Top your tart:

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, unfold your puff pastry sheet and lay it in the center of the cookie sheet. Take a sharp knife and score a ½ inch border around the edge of the puff pastry sheet.

Spread the goat cheese mixture evenly inside the border you have drawn. Lay the asparagus spears side-by-side on top of the goat cheese mixture. I like to alternate the direction that the buds and ends are facing. You may not need all of the asparagus spears. Stop when you get to the far end of the border. Brush the asparagus with olive oil. If baking right away, sprinkle the grated Parmesan cheese and some flaky sea salt on top. If you are assembling for a dinner later in the day, cover the tart loosely with plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator until ready to bake. Right before baking, remove the plastic wrap and top with the parmesan and sea salt.

Bake and serve your tart:

Bake the tart in the center of the oven until the pastry is golden brown and puffy. This should take about 30 minutes, but start watching after 20 minutes. Let the baked tart rest on the cookie sheet for 15 minutes and then slide off onto a cutting board. Sprinkle with black pepper and crushed red pepper. Scatter shaved Parmesan and tarragon leaves on top of the tart and finish with a light drizzle of olive oil. Cut and serve while still warm and oozy.

Substitutions for Asparagus, Goat Cheese and Tarragon Tart

If you cannot find Dufour puff pastry and if the puff pastry that you purchase is not 13"x11" by ⅛" thick, you may need to roll your sheet out on a lightly floured surface to the required dimensions. Dufour puff pastry is worth seeking out and is available at Whole Foods Markets.

Equipment

There is nothing more annoying than baking sheets that warp at high temperature. Invest in a commercial quality baking sheet such as this highly rated Nordic Ware Baker's Big Baking Sheet. You will love it for this recipe and for all of your high heat baking needs.

Top tip

This Asparagus, Goat Cheese and Tarragon Tart tastes best within 1 hour of removing it from the oven, but I certainly wouldn't say no to a piece after it comes to room temperature. Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator and reheat slices on a parchment lined baking sheet in a 300º oven for 10 minutes.

Recipe