Weekend Cookbook Challenge 16 - Something New

Sara at I Like to Cook's Weekend Cookbook Challenge 16 is all about Something New. Sara and her sites are new to me, blogging is still mostly new, and I have a couple of new cookbooks, so I thought, why not?

This dinner itself added up to a couple of new things, actually. Lentils and individual pies. And considering I didn't have individual pie dishes and therefore used an over-sized muffin tin, I think it only gets me half credit.

I wouldn't suggest deviating from the pie dishes. Once these babies were done, it made more sense. Couldn't get them out of the muffin pan without breaking them, so we ate them directly from the tin. I'd hoped for a nice pretty picture with the wee cute pie on the plate with the pretty salad... no dice. Dave and I both found them really tasty, though, so even if you don't mind sharing eating from the tin, go forth.

Lentils are nice. They boiled away happily as I fought with the phyllo dough. Let me tell you... don't get phyllo from Wegmans, get it from Whole Foods. (I can't vouch for anywhere else.) I thank the cooking spirits that my first phyllo experience was flawless, because tonight... omg... If tonight had been my first night, I'd've never gone back. The sheets were all stuck together... which just lead to more tearing... bleh. Nightmare.

I even want to liken tonight to sports. When the super kick-ass team is playing the crappiest... and they walk in all puffed up, like its in the bag.... and then they lose. I thought I had this. Goat cheese, awesome. New lentil experience, check. Phyllo, rockin... 'cept... not so much. In the end, I just buttered and stuck broken sheets together... cause, really, what CAN'T butter fix?


Lentil and Goats Cheese Tarts
From “Off the Shelf: Cooking from the Pantry” by Donna Hay

150 g (5 oz) du puy lentils
6 sheets phyllo pastry
50 g (1 ½ oz) butter, melted
500 g (1 lb) ricotta cheese
4 eggs
1 ½ cups (12 fl oz) milk
¼ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 cup cooked chicken, shredded
cracked black pepper and sea salt
180 g (6 oz) goat’s cheese, sliced ▪

Place the lentils in a saucepan of boiling water and cook for 15 minutes or until tender. Drain and set aside. Preheat the oven to 160° C (325° F). Cut the pastry sheets in half to make squares. Lightly brush the pastry squares with the butter and make piles of 3 sheets each. Line 6 greased 1 cup (8 fl oz) capacity dishes (or large muffin tin) with the pastry, folding to fit the edges in the dishes.

To make the filling, mix the ricotta, eggs and milk in a food processor until smooth. Place in a bowl and stir through the cooked lentils, parsley, pepper and salt.

Pour the mixture into the pastry shells and top with the goat’s cheese. Bake for 30 minutes or until the filling is set. Serve warm.

Serves 4.

▪ You can also use blue cheese or aged cheddar.