More on Tarte Goyere -- Upgrade!

I recently had the most incredible appetizer while having dinner with my daughter.  It was a bleu cheese creme brulee served with a thick fig jam on the side.  You scooped both onto a crostini drizzled with a bit of balsamic vinegar reduction.  Yes, the creme brulee even had that light crust of caramelized sugar on top.  Heavenly.  We could have made the entire dinner off of that (but glad we didn't; the entrees that followed were also dreamy!)

This sparked a discussion between us about the Tarte Goyere -- wouldn't it be great to add that fruit flavor to this medieval dish?

So we did!  We searched a farmer's market and a store and had no luck acquiring fig jam.  However we did decide that a rich cider apple butter would make an acceptable substitute.  

My daughter quickly made the tarte and put it into the oven for 15 minutes.  Then she thinly covered the top with a mix of 4 tablespoons of apple butter and 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar.  We tasted the mix before it went on -- she adjusted it until you got that light bite of the vinegar but it did not come through strongly as vinegar.  Then she cooked it for 10 minutes more followed by just a few minutes under the broiler.

After dinner picture!

The Verdict:  My, oh my!  The taste was lovely.  We both agreed that it needed more of the apple butter flavor so we simply spooned more on our slices at the table.  I made sure some of the apple butter got on my crust, too.  This was definitely a culinary success.

Notes:  She used an egg beater to whip the eggs and only got them to the foamy stage.  (The original recipe said, "Whip the eggs" which means I took it to soft peaks.)  This did not affect the overall texture of the tarte but she believes the broiling is what made it right.  She commented that the tarte didn't get puffy until it was under the broiler.

She also used 6 ounces of bleu cheese for a stronger bleu flavor, thinking it would go better with the apple butter.  She was right!

She also feels that next time she would start with the thicker layer of apple butter because it would be easier to spread.  She would also make sure it got on the crust, which was folded over the edges of the tarte.