Onion and Bacon Tart (Page 71)

RECIPE #992

• Date: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 -- 7pm
• Location: Bloomington, IN
• Kitchen: My Apartment
• Dining Companions: Matty, Emilee, Brian, Sam, Terry, and Teri
• Recipe Rating: A-
  

I made dinner for our pre-wedding visitors a few days before the wedding. This was one component of that meal. I started by making the dough. I proofed the yeast in water and honey. Then I added flour and salt and kneaded it in my stand mixer. I let the dough rise for 4 hours. Meanwhile I made the topping -- I cooked chopped bacon and a little water until the fat was rendered. Then I removed the bacon from the pan and used the bacon fat to grease a baking sheet. I cooked onions slowly in butter, with some caraway seeds, salt and pepper. When the dough was ready, I spread it out on the greased baking sheet, spread it with a mixture of creme fraiche, thyme, and salt, then topped it with the pieces of bacon and carmelized onions. I baked this in a hot oven, on a pizza stone which had been heating in the oven for more than an hour. This dish was not at all what I expected ("tart" is definitely the wrong word for it -- there was nothing tart-like about the dough), but it was delicious. Honestly, you can't go too wrong with dough topped with caramelized onions and bacon, and this dish was a lovely rendition of that concept. The creme fraiche mixture was just barely detectable in the end, but it added a touch of creaminess that worked well. The dough had a great texture to it -- I think cooking it on a pizza stone contributed a lot to that. And the flavors of the onions and the bacon were, of course, delicious. It wasn't the most attractive dish, but it tasted great! Everyone seemed to like this dish quite a bit.

The recipe is here.

Hello from Utah! Our honeymoon trip continues to be awesome. On Sunday we drove from Wyoming to Utah. When I was making reservations for our trip, I had thought it might be nice to rent a house for a few days in the middle -- hotels get old after a while. The house we rented looked nice online, but it is even better than we expected! It's on a tiny island in a river that runs through a canyon. The house is the only thing on the little island, so we are surrounded by a beautiful rolling river. Here is a picture of my special gentleman standing in front of the house, on the footbridge that you cross to get to the front door.


And here's a picture of my special gentleman standing in the "backyard," which is really a beach, a fire pit, and a place to play horseshoes!


The inside of the house is really nice too! Despite how nice the house is, we have still been out exploring the area. Yesterday we rented all-terrain vehicles and rode on an ATV trail through the Wasatch Mountain Range. My last experience with an ATV was more than 15 years ago, and it ended badly (I still have scars!), so I was a little nervous about this. But it was incredible! Driving the ATV was super fun and the views only got more and more amazing as we rode higher and higher. Here's a picture of us in our gear:


My special gentleman and I decided to share one ATV and take turns driving. This, I think, was a bit of a mistake, as being on the back of the ATV was much more frightening than being the driver! We only had two close calls though, and both while I was driving. I tipped the ATV twice, but managed to catch it with my foot both times before we fell off. Unfortunately, one of the times I tipped it, I was driving through a river, so I ended up very, very wet when I used my leg to catch us! My special gentleman and I laughed about the fact that I tipped it and he didn't. Either I am less cautious than him (which seems highly unlikely!), or I'm a worse driver! I think the real answer is that I drove the roughest terrain... at least that's what I'm telling myself! Here's a picture of me on the ATV:

Today I woke up tired and wanted to do something a little more relaxing. So we went out on a beautiful lake in a canyon and paddle-boated and kayaked. Basically we boated out to the middle of the lake and then took a nice nap on the boat, soaking up the sun and enjoying the amazing views. After our day on the lake, we went indoor, glow-in-the-dark miniature golfing. It was odd, but fun!

Tomorrow is our last full day in this part of Utah, then we are headed south to visit Canyonlands and Arches National Parks!