Recipe: Mushroom and Comté tartlets

Chef Laura Pope has worked together with Comté cheese to create a recipe for mushroom and thyme tartlets, great for your Christmas party

Comté cheese is carefully produced in the Jura Mountains of eastern France, in a traditional method that has not changed for centuries. From sweet to nutty, Comté expresses a wide diversity of natural aromas. This means it is a versatile cheese that can be used in a range of different recipes, even British ones!

Comté has brought in chef Laura Pope to develop new recipes with a distinctly British twist. Why not try her recipe for mushroom and thyme tartlets with Comté for a tasty treat at your Christmas party?

RECIPE

Makes 12 tartlets.

INGREDIENTS

• 3 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 onion, finely diced

• 250g mushrooms, finely diced

• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

• Salt and pepper

• 12 thin slices of white bread

• 50g butter, softened (you may not need it all)

• 50g Comté cheese, grated finely

METHOD

1. Heat oven to 220°C (200°C fan oven).

2. Grease the tart tin with olive oil.

3. Heat a tablespoon of the olive oil in a frying pan and gently fry the onion for about 5 minutes until soft and just starting to get golden.

4. Add the mushrooms and thyme leaves and raise the heat, then cook for about 5 minutes until the mushrooms are done and the liquid has evaporated. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

5. Butter one side of the bread, then cut circles of bread with a pastry cutter (about 7cm diameter) to fit in a shallow bun tin. Press them, buttered-side up, firmly into the holes.

6. Put the mushroom mixture into each bread case, sprinkle over the Comté and bake in the oven for about 12 minutes until golden brown. Serve hot.

To find out more about Comté cheese visit www.comtecheese.co.ukIf you fancy trying Comté for yourself don’t miss the French market at The France Show 2015 in London!