Radish & Fromage Blanc Tartelettes with Fennel Seed Pastry

It's no secret that I love radishes! I especially love french breakfast radishes with butter & salt, of course. A little plate of that with a chilled glass of 'Lillet' and I'm in food heaven!

Considering my fondness for this veg, I was delighted to come across Chocolate & Zucchini's mention of this recipe last week, and of course I went right out and tried it. I can hardly imagine anything better!

In the same posting Clotilde also listed instructions for making a yogurt pastry which was a perfect crust for this 'tarte fine'. This is definitely my new favorite crust which I will be using for many sweet and savory tarts and quiches in the coming months. It comes together so nicely and uses half the amount of butter as traditional pastry while still producing a flaky and flavorful result. Give it a try... in fact make a double batch like I did and freeze one for the next time inspiration strikes!

Enjoy!

Radish & Fromage Blanc Tartelettes with Fennel Seed Pastry:

Yields 10 4" diameter tartes

For the pastry: (adapted from Clotilde Dusoulier)

1 cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup millet flour

1/2 cup plain greek-style yogurt (low-fat is fine)

1/4 cup cold unsalted butter, diced

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp fennel seeds

1) Combine the flours, salt & fennel seeds in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times to combine. Add in the diced butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add in the yogurt, all at once, and process until the mixture forms a dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured board and knead briefly, just to bring together. Flatten into a disc and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes or until well chilled.

2) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Lightly flour a board and roll out the chilled pastry to 1/8" thick. Using a 6" round cutter (or a glass or a ramekin), punch out the circles of pastry. Fold the edges in towards the center in a free-form way (think crostata), leaving a 4" cavity in the center.

3) Using a fork, dock the pastry shells all over, to prevent from puffing up too much in the oven. Bake for about 15 minutes until lightly golden brown. Cool completely before filling. The pre-baked shells can also be frozen at this stage, up to 1 month.

For the topping:

2 bunches french breakfast radishes (about 20, 2" long radishes)

1 cup fromage blanc (or creme fraiche)

1 TB fresh thyme, finely chopped

sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

fleur de sel, for garnish

1) Mix together the fromage blanc, salt, pepper, & thyme in a small bowl.

2) Spread about 2 TB of the seasoned fromage blanc onto each cooled pastry shell. Arrange the sliced radishes on top. Sprinkle with fleur de sel and serve.