recipe goodness :: wild pokeweed and field garlic breakfast tart

Wild Pokeweed and Field Garlic Breakfast Tart

After my foraging tour with Leda Meredith through Prospect Park, I came home with a bag full of wild treasures and the conviction that I could turn these “weeds” into something mmmm-inducing. I’ve never trampled through a field before and then thought the greens below my feet would make for a tasty meal {not a common thought for a New Yorker}. But I’ve come a long way after a mere two hours with Leda — and am now emboldened to cook with ingredients found a few feet from a park bench. For those of you who don’t plan to take up foraging anytime soon, or don’t have access to a forage-friendly plot of land, I’ve included suggested recipe substitutions to these wild cousins. And let me just say, this recipe exceeded my wildest expectations — it’s a start-your-morning-right winner.

Field Garlic, Pokeweed Leaves and Shoots

Wild Pokeweed and Field Garlic Breakfast Tart
Serves 6-8 | Crust recipe from Tamar Adler’s Everlasting Meal

Rustic Olive Oil Tart Crust:
2  1/2 cups of flour
1/2 cup+ cold water
1/3 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt

Tart Filling:
6 farmers’ market large eggs
6-8 pokeweed shoots, chopped {use asparagus as a substitution}
Small handful of garlic shoots, chopped {chives as a substitution}
Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 lemon, juiced
6 oz greek yogurt or labne

1. Mix all the ingredients for the dough together and separate into two separate balls of dough. Add a little extra cold water at a time if the dough is crumbling and not coming together.
2. Form each half into a disc shape, wrap in plastic wrap and put in the fridge or freezer to chill while you prepare the greens, about 30-45 minutes.
3. Rinse all your wild greens thoroughly and remove any dry ends or pieces. Roughly chop the pokeweed stalk and leaves into 1-2 inch pieces. {Note: Pokeweed is best enjoyed early Spring when the plant is a single shoot. Avoid eating with the pokeweed branches out and turns dark magenta as it will become toxic at this stage}.
4. Finely chop the garlic shoots.
5. Heat a generous pour of olive oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat cook all the greens until wilted and tender. Remove from the heat and squeeze with lemon, season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
6. Roll one of the discs on a floured surface to fit the shape of your pan {save the other for another time}. I used a rectangular tart pan, but a pie dish will work too. Press the crust into all the corners of the dish you select so the bottom is completely covered in dough. I had to borrow some more dough from the second disc, so do what you gotta do to make it work for you. You can keep the remaining dough in the freezer for a future midweek tart.
7. Pierce the dough all over with a fork, then lay a piece of foil loosely over the dough. Place pie weights, dry beans or a smaller glass baking dish on the dough to keep it from rising. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes.
8. While the dough is baking beat all your eggs in a bowl with half of the yogurt and season with salt and pepper.
9. Remove the par-baked tart from the oven. Remove the weights and foil and spread the greens across the dough. Pour the egg mixture over the top of the tart and dollop the remaining yogurt evenly spaced on top of all the ingredients.
10. Bake 20 minutes or until egg is set and firm to the touch.
11. Sprinkle with Maldon sea salt, slice, serve and thank me later!

Delightful Rustic Olive Oil Tart Crust from Tamar Adler

The Simplest Ingredients, Make the Happiest Meals

Other Eggs-ellent Breakfast Winners:
Secret DiLaura Family Frittata with Sweet Italian Sausage
How To Cook The Perfect Sunny Side-Up Egg
How to Cook the Perfect 8.5 Minute Egg
How to Cook the Perfect Poached Egg {with Ramp Butter!}