Once Upon a Tart...

Ten years ago, two men (one from France, one from New Jersey) hatched a plan to introduce the palates of New York to the gastronomic wonders of the tart--both sweet and savory. In a Long Island City warehouse bakery, Frank Mentesana (who trained under the sharp eye of his grandmother in her New Jersey kitchen) and Jerome Audereau (who once ran a tarterie in Avignon) took orders from upscale Manhattan grocers and restaurants. Almost immediately, their business flourished, leading them to a new frontier: Once Upon a Tart, their own cafe and bakeshop in SoHo. Now, for the first time, they share their recipes for soups (Chickpea-Tomato with Fresh Rosemary), salads (Couscous with Roasted Vegetables and Sun-dried Tomatoes), sandwiches (Pork Loin with Frisee and Rosemary-Garlic Aioli on a Baguette; Chicken Caesar-ish Salad on Toasted Italian Country Bread), muffins (Honey-Corn; Pear-Ginger-Raisin), scones (Spiced Pumpkin with Fresh Cranberries), cookies (Hazelnut Meringues; Very Ginger Cookies) and, of course, tarts (Caramelized Leek and celery; Sauteed Spinach and Mushroom with Ricotta; Jerome\'s Mother\'s Famous Almond Tart). Here, too, are technical tips and culinary wisdom (When people ask me for a low-calorie scone... I tell them: Eat half the scone, it\'s half the calories) from the cooks behind one of the best cafes and bakeshops in New York.