Back in Blighty, tarte tatin (baked apples on puff pastry with a caramel sauce) was my party piece, brought out at dinner parties to rapturous applause. I've tried it twice here in the Bayou City but both times it was disappointing. So naturally I was a bit apprehensive when we decided to try a vegetarian version with shallots and shiitakes.
You have to peel and halve 500g of shallots, then sweat them in butter and sugar for 30 minutes. Then you add some red wine, balsamic and a bay leaf and let it reduce, put a sheet of puff pastry on top and then into the oven. Susan cleaned some shiitakes and sauteed them in butter and garlic, making the kitchen smell fabulous.
When the puff pastry is golden brown you have to take a deep breath and invert it onto a plate. This is not trivial as you have to use oven gloves, but I managed to get it out ok. Susan poured the mushrooms, butter and all onto the tart and we ate it with the rest of the wine - pretty damn good!
