Tarte Flambée: French Bacon and Caramelized Onion Pizza

If you love pizza and caramelized onions and bacon (and who doesn’t?) you’re going to love tarte flambée, a delightful flatbread from the Alsace region of France.

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One of the benefits of living in a small town is that everyone knows who you are.

(Wait–did I just say that’s a benefit?)

Okay, the benefit is that, in a small pond, it’s relatively easy to develop your identity. With fewer fish, it’s easier to build your brand and to become the go-to person in your field.

My husband regularly gets called by local clubs and groups to give his amazing talk on succulents. He’s the “succulent plant guy.” (chuckle)

And because I’ve baked bread for many years and teach taught monthly baking classes, I’m the “bread class lady.” Hey, I’ve been called worse!

Recently, a Girl Scout leader reached out to see if I could teach German cooking to her troop of elementary aged kids. She knew that since I was “the bread class lady”, I might be able to help.

A Christmas market in Alsace

Since David and I spent Christmas in Alsace several years ago, I decided to show the girls how to make some foods we experienced there.

By the way, you might be wondering why I’m bringing up France when I was asked to do a German cooking class.

The region of Alsace, in northeast France, has alternated between German and French control over the centuries and reflects both of the cultures. The best of both worlds!

I have such fond memories of the Alsatian Christmas markets at night.

We would stop for a slice of tarte flambée and a cup of steaming spiced wine and eat it while standing at a handmade wooden table. Crisscrossed string lights glowed overhead. Ahhh…

Okay, I’m back.

I’m pretty sure the troop leader would have frowned on us sharing a spiced wine recipe, so I settled on gingerbread, soft pretzel rods and tarte flambée. I also added a Black Forest cupcake for dessert because what girl doesn’t love chocolate cake?

Since pizza is my favorite food, I’ve developed a recipe for Tarte Flambée using my standard food processor pizza dough.

A bit of tarte flambée history

This thin pizza came about as a way for bakers to test the heat of their wood-fired ovens. If the tarte flambée cooked in 1-2 minutes, it’s edges nearly scorched by the flames, the oven was at the ideal temperature to bake bread.

It’s a simple dish to make, one in which the whole is definitely greater than the sum of its parts. Its parts are pretty stellar though!

To make tarte flambée you’ll need:

• Pizza Crusts. Homemade or store bought. Personal size (about 6-8″ across) are best.

 

• Crème Fraîche. If you live in a place where you can buy crème fraîche in the shops I am so, so very envious. I can’t, so I substitute strained Greek yogurt: Just line a sieve with a coffee filter or cheesecloth, spoon in the yogurt and leave in the fridge to drain for a couple hours. Then proceed with the recipe.

 

• Caramelized Onions. Here’s the recipe I followed when first starting out. The key to caramelizing onions is to go for low and slow. And always make extra because they’re good on everything and can turn a kinda boring meal into something special!

 

• Bacon. Cooked and drained. I prefer to cut up the bacon (using these kitchen scissors) before frying as it seems to cook faster and is just easier to deal with.

 

• Gruyere or Swiss cheese. J’adore the nutty flavor of Gruyere! It’s worth seeking out for this recipe and to make French Onion Soup.

 

During the pandemic, I’ve especially enjoyed eating foods that remind me of my travels. With my love of pizza and France, this recipe is a favorite!

 

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