Beetroot & Sweet Potato Tart

First, put your patience cap on, cause this one’s a doozy. At least it was for me as I have minimal experience with anything pie-related. In your Kitchen Aid or food processor (or if you’re super awesome at making things by hand, simply use a mixing bowl), put all dry ingredients and pulse until they are well combined. I used my KitchenAid and the round whisk attachment. Begin slowly cutting in the chilled butter, a few tablespoons at a time. Once all of the butter is in, the mixture should have small beads the size of a pea. Begin adding the ice water a tablespoon at a time, continuing to mix. Once all of the water is well incorporated, turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, knead just a few times. Press the dough into a thick disk shape, then wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap. Allow the dough to sit at least one hour in the refrigerator.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Wash and peel the beets and sweet potato. Cut them about ¼” to ½” thick. Drizzle them lightly with olive oil and some salt. Lay the pieces flat on a lightly oiled cookie sheet. Bake for about 12 minutes, then check on the vegetables. The sweet potato should be about done – if this is the case, remove the sweet potato pieces and allow the beets to bake another 10 to 15 minutes. You want all veggies to be soft, but not crispy. Once the beets are ready, remove from oven and set aside.

While, the beets and sweet potato are roasting in the oven, heat the two tablespoons of olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté 2 minutes before adding the garlic and fennel. Saute about 3 minutes before adding a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar. Wait until the vinegar is mostly absorbed and add another tablespoon of balsamic vinegar. Again, wait until mostly absorbed, another 4 or 5 minutes, and add the tablespoon of red wine. Continue to sauté until everything is soft and the liquid has almost completely evaporated and is coating the mixture. Set Aside until you are ready to put everything together.

Take the tart dough out of the refrigerator, unwrap it and transfer it to a floured surface. Roll the dough into a circle shape about ¼” thick. I didn’t have any extra dough and it all fit very nicely into an 8” tart dish. If you have extra dough, simply trim it off and make something wonderful with it later. The recipe I followed said to refrigerate the dough again for another 30 minutes. I skipped this step. Prick the dough lightly with a fork and bring out your tart mold.

Allow the tart to cool about 15 – 20 minutes before inverting it onto a large serving plate. Use a sharp knife to cut slices.