Autumnal weather means heartier meals in my book. Long gone are my yearnings for crisp fresh salads. Now, I am dreaming of warm flaky pastry, creaminess and how to use the bounty of fabulous vegetables that we now have. Particularly like leeks with their mild onion flavour, especially when combined with creamy textured cheese. All things considered this isn’t too calorific (having been on the scales this morning, I am back to being aware of how fattening the things I put in my mouth are!) – 474 per portion.
Creamy potato, leek and Gruyère tart
Ingredients serves 6
375g block fresh shortcrust pastry
500g small new potatoes
250g baby leeks
3 large eggs
2 tbsp crème fraîche
1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
75g Gruyère, grated
1 garlic clove, crushed
Small bunch of fresh chives, snipped
How to prepare
Preheat the oven to 190°C/fan170°C/gas 5. Roll out the pastry to fit a 30cm x 20cm Swiss roll tin, with some pastry overhanging. Crimp the edges, prick the base and chill for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, boil the potatoes for 7-8 minutes, until very tender. Drain and cool. Half-fill a pan with water, bring to the boil and cook the leeks for 2 minutes. Drain and pat dry.
In a large jug, beat the eggs with the crème fraîche, mustard, Gruyère and garlic, then stir in the chives. Season well.
Line the pastry case with baking paper and fill with baking beans or rice. Bake for 15 minutes, until golden. Remove the baking beans and paper and bake for 2 minutes more.
Slice the potatoes into pound coin-thick slices and lay out on the pastry. Arrange the leeks on top of the potatoes and pour over the egg mixture. Bake for 20 minutes, until the filling has set and the top is golden. Stand for 10 minutes before serving. Also delicious served cold.
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