Elsaesser Flammekuche / Tarte Flambee

Flammekuche or Tarte Flambee is a very typical dish in the Alsace region of France. The Alsace is an area that has been going going back and forth of being either the territory of Germany or France. And the dialect of Alsace reflects that strongly, by being a mix of German and French words in one sentence.

While living in Offenburg Germany, we went over to Strassbourg often, which is the main city in Alsace. Food options over there are endless and as there are many vineyards there's also a lot of vine festivals. Flammekuche is often enjoyed with "New Wine" as a snack or just as a nice light meal with some salad and a nice glass of white wine.

To make a traditional Flammekuche you will need

* 215g Flour
* 1/8tbsp Salt
* 2tsp Oil or Lard
* 125ml Water
* 200g Sour Cream or Creme Fraiche
* 200g Onion (sliced in rings)
* 100g Speck (cured/smoked bacon) thin slices cut in stripes

Making the crust

Put the flour on your work surface and make a little well in the middle, then add the salt, oil (or liquid lard) and water int he well and at the same time, using a fork, mix the water, oil and flour. After taht knead the dough so it is soft and silky and not sticky (if it feels sticky add a little flour.

Add Toppings

Separate the dough into two pieces and roll into two very thin rounds (or just roll into one big pie or square for a bigger tarte). Cover the crust generously with the Creme Fraiche (Sour Creme), distribute the thinly sliced onion and then the Speck on top if the Creme Fraiche. Season with some freshly grated black pepper and if you like with some cumin seeds.

Bake

In the very hot oven (preheated to 450 F) bake the Flammekuche until the crust is nice and crispy and the Creme Fraiche is bubbly.

Enjoy!

If you add the cumin, the onions will be easier to digest. Also you can make a sweet version of this as dessert. Just switch out the onion for thinly sliced apples and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.

Leek and Canadian Bacon Tarte

As I said, sometimes I go back to my Swiss roots and I make something that is typically Swiss. This time I decided to give it my own little twist. It is pretty usual in northern Switzerland to have meatless meals on Fridays. A lot of people in Schaffhausen, where I am from, eat a variety of savory or sweet tartes. they can be eaten warm or cold and almost every bakery and grocery store with a deli counter will offer a variety of them.

In Schaffhausen, the most famous and traditional one is what is called "Schaffhauser Boelle Tuenne", which means "Onion Tarte from Schaffhausen" its a very traditional food staple. I usually make this one from time to time, but I had some leeks and some Canadian Bacon I didn't want to go to waste so I used them instead of just using onions.

The base recipe comes out of "The Swiss Cookbook" by Betty Bossi, but lots of Swiss Cookbooks will have a basic crust recipe in them. It's fast, easy and anyone has the ingredients in their fridge and pantry.

Here is what you need for the crust:

200 g flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 75 g butter cut in cubes, 100 ml water

Mix flour and salt in a bowl, add the butter and work the butter into the flour with your fingers until you have small crumbles (kinda looking like parmesan crumbs), then add the water and work it quickly into a soft dough (don't knead), flatten it out a little, cover it and let it rest in the fridge for about 30 minutes.

 

Once the dough is cool, take it out of the fridge and with a rolling pin , roll it to an about 3 mm thick round. Transfer into a round tart pan , and prick the crust all over with a fork, put back into the fridge for about 15 min.

Prepare the filling. I used

3 stalks of leeks (cut in thin rings), 2 thick slices of Canadian bacon (cut in small cubes). To do this I use either a large Chef's Knife or a Utility Knife from the Jamie Oliver Collection. These knives are super sharp (be careful) and balance perfect in your hand, which is very important when you are working in the kitchen.

For the custard mix 100 ml milk, 100 ml cream, 1 large egg, salt, pepper, garlic powder, smoked paprika and I added some fresh grated parmesan.

Take the crust out of the fridge and evenly spread leeks and bacon on the crust, then pour the custard mix evenly over the filling. Bake in the lower half of a preheated (425 Degrees)  for about 30 min.

Remove from the oven, let cool slightly and serve warm with a nice green or mixed salad and a nice glass of white wine. A Riesling or Chardonnay will work very well!

Bon Appetit!


You can use the same crust recipe to make a sweet tart as well. For example with apples, apricots or plums. after cooling the crust in the fridge, sprinkle it with ground almonds or hazelnuts.


Then layer fruit in a shingle pattern on the crust until covered, mix the custard, but instead of all the spice, mix in 3 tablespoons of sugar and maybe some vanilla flavor or cinnamon, pour the mixture over the fruit and bake as above adding about 10 minutes of baking time to soften the fruit.

YUMMY!!!