Bacon & Spinach Tart from Nick Malgieri's bake!

This past weekend my friend Laetitia invited me to her condo for a Rose wine tasting. Of course I said yes. But then I began feeling under the weather, not to mention that Sunday, the day of the tasting, was a non-stop rainy day. It reminded me of Seattle. I could barely see anything out of my window.

But I was looking forward to learning more about Rose  wines, hanging out with friends and baking. Yes, I decided  to bake something for this get together. But what? Luckily, I had Nick Malgieri's Bake! book to consult. I received this book from his PR people a while ago and have admired the gorgeous photographs and mouth watering recipes, but haven't put the book to use yet.

Flipping through the book, I settled on the Spinach & Bacon Tart recipe. Unless you are a vegan, or vegetarian, or keep Kosher, how can you resist a combination of bacon, eggs, cream, cheese and spinach? Exactly!

I did not have the time or desire to make my own crust, and also changed a few steps and ingredients in the original recipe. What follows is my adaptation of Nick's recipe.

{Side Note: I've met Nick several times when I worked as an assistant at the Sur La Table's Culinary Program. Let me just tell you, the way this man ices a cake is MAGIC.}

Bacon & Spinach Tart adapted from Nick Malgieri's bake!
Printable Recipe

Ingredients
4 bacon slices, diced
1 onion, diced
salt & pepper
1 pinch red pepper flakes
10 ounces of frozen spinach defrosted and pressed (so that there is no water in it)
1 cup grated Cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons pesto
1 1/2 cups light cream
3 eggs
1 pie crust

Directions
1. Preheat your oven to 375F.
2. Heat a large skillet and add your bacon. Cook the bacon for about 2 minutes.
3. Add an onion, season with salt and pepper and red pepper flakes. Saute for about 10 minutes.
4. Add spinach and cook for a few minutes. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and let it cool slightly.

5. Add Cheddar and pesto. Mix.

6. Pour in the light cream. {Do you like my action shot?}

7. Incorporate all ingredients together.

8. Whisk in 3 eggs and pour the whole concoction into a pie dish "lined" with a pie crust. {I used a bit of oil spray to make sure the crust will not stick to the dish.}

9. Bake the tart for about 35-40 minutes.

The tart was a big success! You can eat it almost immediately or wait until it reaches room temperature. Sorry I don't have any photos of the tart sliced.

You can give this tart your own spin: add whatever vegetables you like, take out the bacon and add ham or chicken, use another kind of cheese, and/or add nutmeg as Nick recommended.

This is a great dish to serve at brunch and is great for breakfast the next day.

What's your favorite activity on a rainy day? {Let's keep it clean, people! :)}