Recipe: Pistachio and mint goat cheese tart

Total time: 1 hour, 10 minutes

Servings: 6

Note: From T. Nicholas Peter at the Little Door. Peter likes to serve the tarts with a salad of cilantro and mint with garbanzo beans, tomatoes, preserved lemons and thinly sliced Persian cucumbers, which can be found at farmers markets.

1/2 cup shelled pistachios, divided

2 sheets puff pastry, thawed

Flour, for rolling

16 ounces goat cheese, room temperature

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

Salt

Freshly ground pepper

Dash nutmeg

1 teaspoon chopped garlic

12 mint leaves, thinly sliced, plus 18 whole mint leaves for garnish

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

2 eggs

1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the pistachios on a baking sheet and bake until lightly toasted, 7 to 8 minutes. Cool, chop and set aside.

2. Butter 6 (4-inch) tart pans. Roll out the puff pastry on a floured surface to 1/8-inch thick. Press the pastry, one tart pan at a time, gently into the bottom and into the fluted sides. Trim the top of the pastry so that it is even with the top of the pan. Prick the bottom of each tart with a fork. Chill 15 minutes while you prepare the filling.

3. Cream the goat cheese with an electric mixer until smooth, then add 2 tablespoons olive oil, salt and pepper to taste, the nutmeg, garlic, sliced mint and half of the pistachios. On slow speed, add the cream and eggs and mix until well incorporated.

4. Divide the mixture among the tarts, filling each about 2/3 full. Place 3 mint leaves on each tart, fanning out from the center. Sprinkle the remaining nuts around the leaves and sprinkle the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over the tarts to help prevent the mint leaves from burning. Place the tarts on a baking sheet and bake until golden brown, about 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes, then remove from the tart pans.

Each serving: 503 calories; 346 mg. sodium; 133 mg. cholesterol; 43 grams fat; 19 grams saturated fat; 12 grams carbohydrates; 20 grams protein; 1 gram fiber.