Root Vegetable Tarte Tatin

Show stopping and absolutely delicious this Root Vegetable Tarte Tatin is the perfect vegetarian main dish or side dish that will impress anyone! Perfect for the holiday table or any special occasion.

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Savory Tarte Tatin

I had a mission of making a show stopping vegetarian recipe for the holidays.

I came up with this amazing Root Vegetable Tarte Tatin.

What is a Tarte Tatin?

A true Tarte Tatin is a French dessert. Invented by the Tatin sisters who made an “upside down” apple pie, in which the apples are caramelized and baked underneath pastry and then flipped to reveal a delicious dessert.

In modern times the tarte tatin has been made into all sorts of dishes. Usually sticking to the theme of a sweet dessert made with fillings like apples, pears, or berries.

There has been some emergence of a savory tarte tatin and when I discovered it I just knew I had to make one. I have seen many done with onions and a few with root vegetables.

Well I was inspired but I wanted to kick it up another notch. What if a tarte tatin was fabulously decorated with root vegetables.

I got to work with the design, even trying rosette vegetables. In the end the easiest way of lining up the vegetables seemed to also be the most stunning.

Equipment

For this dish you will need a few specialty items.

First up a pie plate. You will want a plain old pie plate (glass works best so you can see how the veggies are cooking). You don’t want a pretty one with fun edges, this might throw off how the veggies are lined together.

Next a mandoline slicer. This will ensure uniform consistency with the root vegetables, something that is near impossible to do with just a knife. You can use a handheld mandoline or a larger slicer. Either way you go you will want to make sure that your mandoline can cut the vegetables at 1/8 inch.

Everything else you will need is standard kitchen equipment.

ingredients

Note: For the root vegetables, since size seems to vary so much with vegetables I thought it best to use weight. I typically used about 12 ounces of each root vegetable. If you like to play it safe and have a little extra just in case I suggest buying 1 pound of each, which is 16 ounces. For the carrots golden beets, and turnips I usually just needed 2 large of each. For the sweet potato I typically only need one.

• Single Pie Crust – You can use homemade or store bought. If you are in need of a good pie crust recipe I used my All Butter Pie Crust.
• Carrots – When searching for carrots you will want to look for large carrots, particularly ones that are thick vs long.
• Golden Beets – While red beets get a bad reputation for being ‘earthy’ the golden beet variety is much sweeter and a little nuttier, while they do still have a slight earthy flavor golden beets are much more crowd pleasing due to the fact that they are not as intense as plain red beets. I also choose to go with golden beets because when I used regular red beets it turned everything pink/red. So while you can use them just beware that the beet flavor and color when using red beets will seep into everything else.
• Purple Top Turnips – Purple Top Turnips are the most common kind of turnip grown in North America so chances the ones at your grocery store are purple top turnips. And not to sound obvious you will know they are purple top turnips because they are purple on top and white on the bottom. If you do have other types of turnips these can be used just like purple top turnips.
• Sweet Potato – I liked the sweet potato as an addition into this dish because it does provide some sweetness! When choosing a sweet potato look for one that is longer and somewhat skinny compared to once that is more fat and round.
• Unsalted Butter – The butter will be browned to add extra nuttiness and flavor to the dish.
• Fresh Thyme & Rosemary – I thought these two herbs added such a warming flavor to the root vegetables. You may sub out different herbs if you would like.
• Kosher Salt – And lastly salt to flavor the dish, I recommend using kosher slat when cooking but if you don’t have kosher salt you can use sea salt.

instructions

Preheat the oven to 375º F.

If needed roll out the pie crust. Gently place the pie plate you are using upside down in the center of the pie crust. With a knife cut the pie crust to the size of the top of the pie plate. Transfer the pie crust to a sheet pan and let rest in the fridge until ready to use.

Peel all the veggies. Mandoline slice the veggies 1/8 inch. Keep veggies in seprate piles for ease.

Place a skillet over mefium heat. Add the butter to melt and cook stirring occasionally until the butter starts to brown. Once you have the butter browned add the spices and salt. Whisk together. Remove from heat and set aside.

Using the different veggies carefully place one or two rows of each veggie by making a row of overlapping pieces. In the first few rows you will need to hold the rows in place until you have added enough rows for it to hold in place. Once you have finished making all the rows if you have extra pieces fill them into the rows if needed.

Carefully pour the butter mixture over the veggies. Add the pie crust overtop directly in the center. 

Transfer to the oven for about 60 minutes. If at anytime if your pie crust looks like it is getting burnt go ahead and cover with aluminum foil.

When the veggies appear softened remove from the oven and let rest 2-3 minutes. Carefully and gently tip the pie over a bowl to pour out any extra butter on the bottom. Reserve the butter. 

Place a cutting board or plate overtop the pie crust. VERY CAREFULLY but with quickness flip over the tarte tatin. Use the reserved butter to carefully pour back over the top.

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