Special Sweet Potato Lemon Thyme Tart

Special sweet potatoes whisper to me in the night.

Lemon thyme sings my name.

And Sicilian lemon always has my heart.

Special Sweet Potato Lemon Thyme Tart 

Perfect Homemade Pie Crust:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup ICE COLD butter, chopped
5 Tbs. ice water
1 Tbs. white vinegar
1 tsp. sea salt
1 egg, lightly beaten

 

Filling:
8 oz. mascarpone cheese
6 oz. Havarti, grated
2 eggs
1/4 tsp. lemon salt
2 Tbs. fresh thyme, divided
juice of 1 lemon
zest of 1 lemon, divided

 

Topping:
1 small Japanese sweet potato, very thinly sliced
1 small purple sweet potato, very thinly sliced
1 Tbs. Sicilian lemon olive oil
1/4 tsp. garlic salt

thyme and zest

 

For the crust, combine all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until formed into a ball. Alternatively, use a pastry cutter and hand-cut the ingredients before forming into a ball.

Wrap tightly in plastic and chill for several hours.

 

Meanwhile, bring the cheeses and eggs to room temperature. Combine, along with lemon juice, 1/2 the lemon zest, 1/2 the thyme, and lemon salt in the cleaned bowl of the food processor or blender. Process until silky smooth.

 

Using a mandolin, very finely slice the Japanese and bright purple sweet potatoes.

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Remove 1/4 of the chilled pie crust dough and reserve it for other uses (can be frozen wrapped and airtight for several months). Dust a rolling surface and rolling pin with flour and roll the ball flat.

Carefully lay the crust inside a parchment-lined tart pan (with a removable bottom), pressing dough up the sides.

 

Fill with mascarpone-Havarti-lemon-thyme filling.

 

Top by overlaying the thinly sliced and vibrantly colored sweet potatoes, decorating as desired.

Drizzle with lemon olive oil and sprinkle with garlic salt and the remaining lemon zest and thyme.

 

Bake for about 45 minutes, until the cheese filling is set and the crust edges are golden brown.

 

Allow to cool before slicing.