Roasted Root Vegetables & Goat Cheese Tart with Balsamic Syrup

This one is an oldie but a goodie! It takes a little while to roast the vegetables but the key to this recipe is to keep your veggies al dente so don't let them get soggy. Ew. Soggy is never a word you want someone to use when describing any of your meals.  

This is a great dish for a starter but also wonderful for a meal.  My mouth is watering just thinking about this tart. It's creamy and packed with flavor.  For this recipe, you need to account for the prep time to reduce the balsamic vinegar and wine and baking the pie crust.  Feel free to play around with the types of root vegetables you use for this tart. Sweet potatoes and butternut squash are great additions or substitutions. 

[I often feel better making a dish that highlights the understated veggie. It counterbalances all the recipes I have with butter and cream] - Alice Snow :)

If you plan to use this recipe as a starter/appetizer, consider using pre-made puff pastry cups as this would be a nightmare to have people try to eat while walking around your house (terribly close to your light colored furniture) balancing a glass of wine and a plate. Eek! I have also used mini-tart pans that work great as individual servings. You can serve this tart warm out of the oven or allow the tart to reach room temperature.  If you've reached the end of the recipe and all of your ingredients are cool, pop the entire thing back in the oven, low heat until you're happy with the temperature of your dish. 

                {Roasted Vegetable & Goat Cheese Tart}

Ingredients:

1 recipe for pie crust, full baked OR 1 prepared pie crust such a pepperidge farms, fully baked

3-4 large carrots, chopped

3 parsnips, chopped

1 med. beet OR 1 small can of sliced beets, pickled

Salt (pepper optional)
1 Tbs each of fresh, thyme and rosemary
Olive oil
¾ cup crumbled goat cheese

Balsamic syrup - Recipe below, you can also purchase pre-made syrup at most specialty stores. 
1 cup balsamic vinegar
1 cup red wine [Cabernet or Merlot]
½ cup white sugar

Equipment:

Sauce pan for syrup

10" Fluted tart/quiche pan with removable bottom (example seen here)

Pie weights or a enough dried beans to fill your tart pan use with aluminum foil

Rolling pin for crust

Pastry blender or Food processor for the crust

Jelly roll for roasting the vegetables

Sharp knife to cut raw vegetables, I use my Santoku knife for this work

Cutting board & washable mat or paper towels  to catch beet juice. 

*Tip: wet your paper towel before placing under your cutting board and it will keep it from slipping

Directions:

Adjust oven rack to the middle position and preheat oven to 425deg. 

Follow the directions to prepare your pie crust. Once ready, roll over your tart pan, press gently to mold to the fluted edges. Fill with pie weights and place in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Your crust should look dry and slightly lighter in color.  Place crust back in oven and back for another 10-12 minutes.  You are looking for a deep golden brown on your crust. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack. The pie may take up to 1 hour to cool completely.
**If you are using a pre made pastry cup or packaged pie crust, follow the directions on the package and skip to making the balsamic syrup.

While your crust is cooking, make the balsamic syrup:

Alice's Balsamic Syrup:
1 cup balsamic vinegar
1 cup red wine [Cabernet or Merlot]
½ cup white sugar

Combine all [3] ingredients in a saucepan, bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer. Simmer until liquid has reduced to ¾ of a cup. Liquid will thicken as it cools. Set-aside until ready to serve. **This syrup can be made 2-3 days in advance. Keep in a tight fitting jar and refrigerate. 

Next, chop your chosen vegetables unto ½" cubes, toss with some olive oil, salt and chopped herbs.  Make sure your oven is still registered at 425deg. Spread the vegetables onto your jelly roll pan so they are evenly distributed. Bake for 20 minutes, stir the vegetables then bake for another 10-15 minutes until the veggies are tender and light browned. Remove from oven and cool slightly.
**Beets will take longer to cook so you either want to cut them into smaller pieces or separate this vegetable on another, smaller pan, and cook at the same time for about 10 minutes longer than the parsnips or carrots. If you are going to use pickled beets, simply drain the canned vegetable, chop and mix with warm vegetables out of the oven.

It's time to assemble your tart(s)!  Sprinkle half of your goat cheese in the bottom of your tart, spread the warm vegetables over the goat cheese. Sprinkle the remaining goat cheese over the vegetables and drizzle with your balsamic vinegar.  

Serve on cake stand or large decorative plate. Enjoy!