Smoked fish tart with a parmesan crust pt 1

4 servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
1 ounce Finely grated Parmesan; (Parmigiano
; Reggiano)
4 ounces Plain flour; plus a little extra
; for dusting
1 Pinches salt
1 ounce Softened lard
1 ounce Softened butter
Little cold water
8 ounces Undyed smoked haddock; (skinned raw weight)
4 ounces Kipper fillet; (skinned raw weight)
9 ounces Smoked salmon trimmings
2 fluid ounce Milk
1 Bay leaf
1 pinch Ground mace
2 larges Eggs; plus 2 egg yolks
Little ground nutmeg
7 fluid ounce Creme fraiche or double cream
1 Dsp salted capers or capers in vinegar; well rinsed and
; drained
2 Cocktail gherkins; (cornichons), finely
; chopped
Freshly milled black pepper

Directions

FOR THE PASTRY

FOR THE FILLING

You'll need a 7½"/19cm diameter fluted quiche tin with a removable base, 1 ¼"/3cm deep, very lightly buttered and a small, solid baking sheet 1 Sift the flour with the pinch of salt into a large bowl, holding the sieve up high to give them a good airing.

2 Add the lard and butter and, using only your fingertips, lightly and gently rub the fat into the flour, again lifting the mixture up high all the time to give it a good airing.

3 When everything is crumbly, add the Parmesan and sprinkle in about 1 tbsp cold water.

4 Mix the pastry with a knife and finish off with your hands, adding more drops of water till you have a smooth dough that will clean the bowl. Pop the pastry into a polythene bag and rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 190c/375f/Gas 5.

5 Heat the baking sheet on the centre shelf. Roll the pastry in a circle on a surface dusted with flour. As you roll, give quarter turns to keep the round shape, rolling as thinly as possible.

6 Roll the pastry over the pin to put in the tin. Press lightly and firmly on the base and sides of the tin, easing any overlapping pastry down the sides - don't stretch it too much.

7 Trim the edges and press the pastry up about ¼"/5mm above the rim of the tin all round. Prick the base all over with a fork and brush beaten egg from the filling over the base and sides.

8 Bake the tin on the baking sheet for 20-25 minutes until the pastry is crisp and golden. Check halfway through the cooking time to make sure that the pastry isn't rising up in the centre.

9 If it rises, prick again a couple of times and press down with your hands. When cooked, remove from the oven and lower the heat to 170c/325f/Gas 3.

10 For the Filling: Put the haddock and kipper in a medium sized saucepan with the milk, bay leaf and mace. Bring to simmering point, cover and poach for about two minutes and remove the fish from the milk.

11 Discard the bay leaf, but keep the milk. Lightly whisk the eggs and yolks, and season with nutmeg and pepper, but not salt, as the fish will be fairly salty.

12 Heat the reserved milk, whisking in the creme fraiche or double cream.

When it's at simmering point, pour over the beaten eggs, whisking well.

13 Divide the haddock and kipper into flakes about ½"/1cm in size and arrange in the cooked pastry case, with the smoked salmon trimmings.

14 Scatter the capers and gherkins all over and slowly pour half the cream and egg mixture in, allowing the liquid to settle between each addition.

15 Put the baking sheet in the oven, gradually add the rest of the filling and cook for 30-35 minutes until golden brown and feels firm in the centre.

16 When removed from the oven, let it rest for 10 minutes. Ease it away from the edges using a small knife and place it on a suitable sized jar, which will allow you to carefully ease the sides away.

continued in part 2

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