Wednesday, March 30, 2005

Dining with the Bloggers - March 30th



From the moment I laid eyes on Barrett's photo and recipe for his Mexican Black Bean Tart With Cornmeal Crust, I knew I was going to have to try it. I loved everything about it...from its ingredients (especially the black beans) to its being a tart. With this week's Dining with the Bloggers theme being "Pies and Tarts - Sweet and Savory", the time had finally come (yay!).

Since I was preparing this just for me and I wasn't sure how well it would do as leftovers, I decided to cut the recipe in half and cook it in 10-cm individual tart pans. I made 3, but I think I could have made 4 without much trouble. I found that the timing provided by Barrett worked perfectly for these smaller tarts as well. I didn't attempt to locate Chihuahua cheese and instead used the suggested substitution of mozarella and jack cheese.

Barrett commented in his post that he was particularly proud of the cornmeal crust, and rightly so. It is delicious in its own right, but it is also a perfect accompaniment to the spicy black bean filling. It is corny, buttery and wonderfully crisp. The finished tarts were beautiful and delicious - absolutely perfect in every way. I even relished the leftovers which I reheated in the microwave. Although the crust was not as crispy, it did not get at all soggy and the flavors and textures were still incredible. I was sorry to see the last one go! I have no doubt that I will be making Barrett's tart again!

I wonder what Zarah found ... maybe something sweet for dessert?

3 comments:

Cerebrum said...

I seriously HAVE to try this one...

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the kind words! I'm glad you liked the tart. We've made it a couple of times since then and I can't say that I've changed it much. I'm still pretty happy with the recipe.

Personally, I think any recipe with anything vaguely Mexican or Southwestern needs tequila. Or a shot of tequila to go with it. Or maybe a margarita.

Cathy said...

Hi Zarah - yes you do!!

Hi Barrett - gosh, you're welcome! Thank YOU for a fantastic recipe! You know, I had to go shopping for tequila in order to make your tart. I don't know the first thing about it and was really surprised to see the variety that was available. I don't think I'm ready to drink tequila shots, but margaritas... that's another story!