Black Bean Tart

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Make crust In a bowl with a pastry blender or in a food processor blend or pulse together flour, spices, and salt until combined well. Add butter and blend or pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add ice water and blend or pulse until incorporated and mixture forms a dough.

Press dough evenly onto bottom and sides of a 10 inch tart pan with a removable fluted rim and chill 15 minutes or until firm. LIne the shell with foil and fill with rice. Bake shell in the middle of oven until edge is set, 8 to 10 minutes. Carefully remove foil and rice and bake crust 10 minutes more, or until golden. Cool crust in pan on a rack. The crust may be made 1 day ahead and kept at room temperature, covered loosely with plastic wrap.

Make filling In a bowl, soak dried beans, if using, in water to cover by 2 inches overnight or quick soak and drain. In a large saucepan, combine soaked beans, bay leaf, onion, and water to cover by 2 inches and simmer, uncovered 1 to 1.25 hours, or until tender, adding more water if necessary Drain beans, discarding bay leaf, and cool.

In a food processor, puree 1 cup cooked or canned beans with sour cream until smooth and season with salt and pepper.

In a skillet, heat oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and saute corn with salt and pepper to taste, stirring, about 2 minutes. Cool corn.

In a large bowl, stir together corn, whole beans, bell pepper, coriander, Monterey Jack, jalapenos, and scallions and season with salt and pepper.

Spread the bean puree evenly onto crust and mound with remaining filling, pressing gently. Bake tart in middle of oven for about 20 minutes, or until hot and cheese is melted. Let tart cool in pan on rack 15 minutes.

Remove rim of pan and serve tart warm or at room temperature with lime sour cream. Serves 6 to 8.

Lime Sour Cream

1 cup sour cream

Zest and juice of 1 lime

In a bowl whisk sour cream and lime juice with salt and pepper to taste.