Orange and Goat's Cheese Tart

I am Marisa and I'm addicted to cheese.

There I've said it.

No surprises then that me and Sigrid (from Cooking and Eating with Polkadot Cupcake) unwittingly managed to engineer a cheese slut confessional via twitter on Friday. And in the process a few more renegade cheesists 'fessed up too. However it was Nina from My Easy Cooking who suggested that we participate in a quest for cheese domination. And even our most famous SA blogger export, Jeanne from Cook Sister, jumped on the bandwagon.


So I had a mission: Cheese Domination
I also had a vision: Cheesy Goodness. With a twist. Mac & Cheese wasn't going to cut it in the ultimate cheese-off.

So I uhm'ed and I aaah'ed. Slept late and snuggled under the covers a bit. (Hey it was cold!) Paged through a few old magazines - part of my never ending quest to clear out my magazine stack. And there I saw it. In the glossy pages of Marie Claire. The countdown to the 100 best-dressed celebrities of 2007! Oh, and inspiration for my entry to the Grand Cheese Off. The version in Marie Claire was meant more as a dessert or tea time favourite, featuring cinnamony toasted nuts, ricotta, orange slices and a sugar syrup.

But I was in the middle of a week without sugar (another story altogether and one which I miserably failed subsequently). So it was out with the sugar syrup and my mind started drifting to a savoury version of this macical creation. My Orange and Goat's Cheese Tart had been born. With a whole log of chevin as the base, it also features the star ingredient orange, as well as sesame seeds, onion sprouts and an artful smattering of rocket (aragula) as the grand finale.

Don't forget to have a look at what my fellow cheese sluts cooked up for the Grand Cheese Off - here's to Colleen (Brownie Girl), Sigrid (Cooking and Eating with Polkadot Cupcake), Nina (My Easy Cooking), Nina (@luna_pixie), Nicola (Wot's For Lunch) and Jeanne (Cook Sister). Cheese sluts unite!

Orange and Goat's Cheese Tart
Inspired by Marie Claire (September 2007)

Makes 8 slices

For the dough: 

10g instant yeast

2 cups white bread flour

1/2 cup lukewarm water

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp sugar

pinch salt

For the topping:

100g soft goat's cheese

2 - 3 oranges, peeled and cut into rounds

1/4 tsp salt

freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted

3 tbsp onion sprouts

1/3 cup rocket (aragula)

1. For the dough, mix the yeast, water, oil, sugar, salt and 1 1/4 cups of the flour in a bowl until it comes together. Gradually add the rest of the flour, kneading until elastic. 

2. Form dough into a ball, lightly smear with olive oil and cover with plastic wrap. Leave to rise for 1 to 2 hours in a warm place.

3. Preheat oven to 220C and roll dough out thinly on a floured surface. 

4. Transfer to a oiled baking plate and spread with goat's cheese. Add a little milk to the goat's cheese to make it more spreadable if you're finding it difficult to spread. Arrange orange slices on top and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 10 - 12 minutes or until cooked through and golden.

5. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, and top with onion sprouts and rocket.