Vegan Carrot and Onion Croustade

Vegan Carrot and Onion Croustade

*Update - 17 February 2014: I have altered this recipe slightly to make it vegan, and can testify that it is just as delicious as ever!*

As my old flatmate used to say – you can tell when I have exams, because suddenly there’s cake everywhere!  While its certainly true that I like to de-stress by baking, its not always cake (mostly, yes, but not always!).  This carrot and onion croustade is a perfect example of savoury baking, and a fantastic light lunch, or starter.  The caramelized carrot and onion are fairly sweet, actually, but its chock full of veggies, and its what I had for lunch, so I refuse to put it in the dessert category!  Besides, a croustade is just a term for pastry or pie crust with some kind of filling, so I think its pretty open to interpretation. 

Anyway, this is an adaptation of a fantastic croustade that is served at one of our favourite Toulouse café’s – O3C, a family business adorably run by a husband, wife, and child team, whose names all begin with the letter C.  If you are ever in Toulouse at lunch time, you should really have the (non-vegan) original…if not, try whipping one of these up at home to see what you’re missing!

  

Carrot and Onion Croustade

Total Time: approx 25 minutes, lots longer if you make the pastry yourself

Serves: 4-8 as appetizers (try making little tartlets), or 2-4 as a light lunch

4 medium-large carrots

1 medium onion

2 tsp olive oil and a tablespoon of vegan margarine

1 tsp brown sugar

Juice of ½ lemon

1/8 tsp nutmeg

Salt

Pepper

Puff Pastry

First, finely dice the carrot and onion.  Melt the margarine and olive oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat, and sautée the onion and carrot, stirring occasionally, until they are golden brown and caramelized.  Add the brown sugar and lemon, and cook until it has formed a sticky syrup.  Turn off the heat and add the nutmeg, then salt and pepper to taste.  Spread the puff pastry over your pie dish or casserole dish, or cut into circles for tartlets, then prick the pastry with a fork in multiple places.  Fill the pastry with the carrot-onion mixture, and place in a preheated oven (190C/375F, or whatever your pastry package tells you) until the pastry is golden brown – about 10 minutes.  Best served warm, but cold is nice too!