A savoury tart, or a Quiche if you want to give it its proper French name, is a great canvas on which to showcase seasonal ingredients and a bit of decorative skill. It is a great option for a dinner centrepiece or a party and can be served warm or cold - both options are sure to have people asking you for more.
Asparagus is one of my absolute favourite ingredients - in addition to being one the many ingredients I discovered after moving to the UK. Growing up in Italy, we mostly had white asparagus and it particular, the local variety called Asparago di Bassano. Ten years on, and springtime has now become for me synonym with asparagus and I really relish the freshness and versatility of this wonder-vegetable. If you can subject yourself to a peculiarly smelling pee for 24 hours, you are certainly trading up by incorporating asparagus in your diet: asparagus has a long list of health benefits including improving digestive health and suppling a considerable amount of nutrients for very little calories. So I could not resist sharing with you all this lip-smacking savoury tart recipe - you can serve it with a spot of salad for lunch or dress it up as a table appetizer for a fancier dinner party.
You can also find this recipe published in the latest Broughton Spurtle.
Yields one round tart (about 30cm in diameter)
Ingredients:
- 300g or one sheet of shortcrust pastry
- a bunch of green asparagus
- 3 eggs
- 150ml of cream (I used the soy substitute for lactose intolerance)
- 150ml of milk (I used unsweetened almond milk)
- 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
- 2- 3 medium potatoes
- 70g of semi-soft goat's cheese
- a handful of coarse sea salt
- a drizzle of olive oil
- some table salt
- OPTIONAL sprinkling of thyme (to garnish)
Method:
First things first: remember to remove the shortcrust pastry from the fridge about 20 mins before handling it - if the pastry is too cold it will be difficult to shape and will tend to crack. I have used ready-rolled pastry for this recipe, but you can also make it from scratch: see "extra tips" section at the end of the recipe for my shortcrust pastry recipe.
Pre-heat the oven to 180 C.
Prepare the asparagus by cutting off the hard ends at the bottom. Bring a pot of water to the boil on the hob, add a handful of sea salt and boil the asparagus on medium heat for a couple of minutes. Remove from the pan using a slotted spoon (tipping them out might crush the tips!) and place on a chopping board to cool. Once cooled, slit the asparagus lengthways - hold back 3-4 asparagus and chop into small chunks instead. Set aside.
Peal the potatoes and slice them thinly so to obtain round-ish thin slices - they need to be able to cook rapidly without breaking apart. Place a large frying pan on a medium heat and add a drizzle of olive oil; allow the oil to heat up making sure you distribute it on the entire surface. Once the oil is hot, add the potato slices to the pan, adjust with some salt and add a splash of water to avoid them sticking to the pan. Cover with a lid and cook the potatoes on both sides adding some extra water if necessary - cooking times will vary depending on how think your slices are and what type of potatoes you have used. Roughly you will be looking at 15 mins. Don't worry if the potatoes aren't fully cooked as they will cook further in the oven.
Line a round pie dish with baking paper (I used a loose bottom ridged dish, as I find it easier to remove the ring, but any pie dish will do). Unroll the pastry sheet (or roll out the pastry to measure if you have made your own, using a floured rolling pin) and place it over the pie dish. Using your fingers mould the pastry to the shape of the dish - remember to really press the pastry into the ridges (if using a ridge dish) so to maximise filling space. Using a knife, cut off the excess pastry but remember to leave an extra ledge over the top of the sides. The pastry is likely to shrink during cooking, so we can cut off the extra sides once it has been baked.
You will now need to blind bake your pastry. Using a fork, lightly pierce some holes at the bottom of the pastry layer. Place another layer of baking paper over the pastry and add some baking beans (TIP: if you don't have baking beans, you can use some actual dried beans). Place at the centre of the oven for 15 min.
In the meantime, prepare the filling: in a bowl, whisk together the eggs, cream, milk, nutmeg and a pinch of salt.
Moving on to assembling: once the pastry blind baked, remove from the oven and remove the baking beans using the upper level of baking paper. Using a knife remove the excess pastry on the sides. Raise the temperature of the oven to 200 C. Position a layer of potatoes on the pastry; add the chopped asparagus (not the sliced asparagus!) and come chopped bits of goat's cheese. Finally add the egg mixture until it reaches the edge of the dish sides. Use the sliced asparagus to create a design on the top of the tart. Sprinkle a little bit of thyme on top.
Being careful not to tilt the dish, place in the centre of the oven for 30-40 mins, depending on your oven and on the type of dairy you have used (I noticed that soy cream does not thicken quite as quickly or as much as normal cream). Once the timer is up, your tart might still have a little wobble which is going to cause no trouble if you let it rest and cool before serving it. If the wobble is considerable, I would suggest extending the cooking time at a reduced temperature (180C) - you can also cover the top of the tart with tinfoil if you don't want your design to get too dark.
Some extra tips
If you have some extra time, you can also make your own shortcrust pastry from scratch. You will need:
- 250g of plain flour
- 110g of butter chopped (or dairy free substitute)
- a pinch of table salt
- 2-3 tablespoons of water
Place the flour and salt in a large bowl. Add the butter cubes and using the tips of your fingers, bind the ingredients together - you will obtain a mixture which resembles breadcrumbs. Adding a little water at a time, bind the ingredients together. Once the mixture is combined and smooth, shape it into a ball and wrap it in clingfilm. Place it in the fridge to cool for 15-20 mins before using.
If you end up giving this recipe a go, I would love to see a snap of it. Simply tag @giadasplate on Instagram or send me a DM.
Happy cooking & buon appetito!