Spring Menu
Salmon and leek tart
A lovely start to any meal is these little individual fresh dates stuffed with Averill’s gorgeous goat’s cheese. This recipe comes from the January 09 Cuisine magazine, and was an instant hit as well as an easy last-minute nibble using what is in the fridge. The contrast between the sweet date and the citrus of the lemony goat’s cheese is refreshing and moreish (it tastes literally Moorish actually with the dates and the goats cheese!). Texture is added by the pine nuts. If this is presented on a white plate with a pinch of sumac, some grated lemon zest, a sprinkle of pine nuts and a scatter of fresh mint leaves it does look most attractive.
Fresh dates stuffed with local goat’s cheese and pine nuts
½ cup of Meadowcroft “Provence” goat’s cheese
3 tablespoons of toasted pine nuts
1 teaspoon of finely grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
Freshly ground pepper
12 fresh dates, split open and stone removed
¼ teaspoon of ground sumac
Fresh mint leaves
2 tablespoons of best extra virgin olive oil
Mix the cheese, most of the pine nuts and lemon zest, (save a little of each for serving), the lemon juice and pepper together in a small bowl. Combine the mixture and use a teaspoon to fill the dates. Place onto a white platter in a random style. Just before serving, scatter over the remaining zest, sumac, pine nuts and mint leaves. Serve immediately.
If not for my father’s unwaning enthusiasm for my attempts at pastry-making as a girl, I may never have become the pastry queen I can so proudly confess to being. Night after night I would try a new creation involving pastry, and more often than not it was a disaster. The butter rising from the pastry, through the filling, coming to rest like an oil slick on the top of the tart, or the pastry itself rising up through the filling to the top of the tart. My father would bravely ask for seconds, when no one else would dare, making appreciative noises as the pastry attempted its journey towards his digestive system. “Hardies” was his saviour, and great amounts of it were consumed during the “Pastry Stage” of our lives. Somehow one day the pastry thing just all came together, and it’s got to be one of the greatest achievements of my life.
Personally I prefer the word “tart” to quiche, as the poor old quiche has taken a bit of flak in the past. Tart sounds more refined and when you taste a crisp, buttery, flaky crust with its melt-in-the-mouth savoury filling you will understand why it is deserving of this title. If you don’t feel confident making pastry, try and try again. Invest in your own shares in Hardies (or the modern equivalent) and keep trying until you get there.
The pastry for this tart can be made the day before, rested and rolled out to line a tart dish. The next day just bake it blind while you prepare the filling. When I bake blind, I line the pastry with baking paper and weigh it down with old dried beans or chick peas to stop the pastry from rising. The beans can be reused again and again for years. Just keep them in a jar in the pantry.
Salmon and Leek Tart
Pastry
225g flour
130g butter, chopped
Pinch of salt
Cold water to bind (2-3 tablespoons)
Filling
400g smoked salmon, skin removed and broken into chunks
3 large leeks, finely sliced
40g of butter
5 eggs, beaten lightly
450ml cream
2 tablespoons of finely snipped chives
Salt and pepper
Place the flour, salt and butter into your food processor and mix until the butter is the size of breadcrumbs. Add the water and pulse until the dough just comes together in your hand when you pick some up. Turn onto a lightly floured board and knead a couple of times to form a ball. Flatten (to make rolling easier later), wrap in clingfilm and refrigerate for an hour.
Roll pastry out to line your dish, prick the bottom with a fork and chill for another 30 minutes.
Place into a 190°C oven and bake blind until it is just starting to colour around the edges. Remove the baking paper and beans and continue to bake until the pastry at the bottom of the dish shows some sign of colour. Remove from the oven and pour in the filling. Continue to bake for about 25-30 minutes or until the filling is just set. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes before serving.
For the filling, melt the butter in a large frying pan. Gently sauté the leeks until they melt into the butter—about 10 minutes at a low heat. Cool slightly. Into a large bowl whisk together the cream and the eggs, salt, freshly ground pepper and chives. Add the salmon and the leek mixture and combine. Pour into the baked tart shell and continue cooking as above. Serves 8.
A crisp green salad is the perfect partner.
Fiona Feasey
