Tag Archives: tart

Smoked Fish Tart with Orange Gremolata

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In those fondly remembered days when we lived on board our yacht Oasis in the Caribbean, one of our favourite visits was to the French islands Les Saintes. There we had a memorable Smoked Swordfish Tart at Le Genois. 

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It is fairly unusual to find smoked swordfish or marlin outside of the Caribbean I think, but sometimes here I find smoked tuna slices, which fits the bill perfectly.  I haven’t tried it with canned smoked fish, as the texture of fresh (or defrosted) is so much nicer.  You can use smoked salmon or trout instead.

For a non-fast day, I made this with a wholewheat shortcrust base, but it would work equally well as a crustless quiche – just make sure that you use a really good non-stick dish or grease it really well. You can have 4 generous servings from your tart – it comes to 488 calories with the pastry version – but just 260 per serving for a crustless one, so that would be a lovely main dish for a fast day, to serve with a crisp green salad or steamed vegetables.  The serving shown in the photo is just 1/6, at only 320 kcals.

bourgdesaintesJust imagine that you are looking over crystal clear blue waters and feeling the tropical heat…  

You can get a glimpse of the lovely islands of Les Saintes (and other delightful places) in my cruising journal.

 

 

 

Smoked Fish Tart with Orange Gremolata
Serves 4
A delectable savoury tart which makes the most of a small amount of smoked fish. Served with an intense gremolata.
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Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
50 min
Total Time
1 hr 5 min
Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
50 min
Total Time
1 hr 5 min
For the pastry
  1. 150g wholewheat flour (or half and half wholewheat and plain white)
  2. 75g unsalted butter
  3. pinch salt
  4. water to mix
For the filling
  1. 150g smoked tuna (or swordfish, marlin, salmon or trout)
  2. 3 eggs
  3. 200ml soya milk (or dairy milk)
  4. 1 small red onion, finely sliced
  5. 1 tbsp chopped parsley
  6. salt and black pepper, to taste
For the gremolata
  1. 1 tbsp finely chopped parsley
  2. 1 tsp capers, drained and chopped
  3. zest of 1 orange
  4. 1 clove garlic, crushed
  5. 2 tbsp virgin olive oil
Instructions
  1. Crumble the butter into the flour and salt and add enough water to make a dough.
  2. Preheat the oven to 160c while the dough rests in the fridge, wrapped in cling film.
  3. Grease a quiche dish.
  4. Roll out the pastry quite thinly and line the dish, then trim the edges.
  5. Bake blind for 10 minutes covered with paper and baking beans, then 10 minutes without.
  6. Remove the dish and raise oven temp to 180c
  7. Lay the smoked fish evenly over the pastry (or directly into the dish if going crustless).
  8. Distribute the finely sliced onion over the top.
  9. Beat the eggs in a jug and top up to 300ml with milk (or milk and cream if you want it more luscious).
  10. Season and add chopped parsley then pour over the fish.
  11. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the egg is set and the top golden.
  12. For the gremolata, mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl.
  13. Serve the tart hot, warm or cool, with the gremolata spooned over.
  14. Garnish with orange slices.
Notes
  1. As this has no cheese, it is easily adapted to be completely dairy free, using a good quality sunflower or olive oil based spread as an alternative to butter for the pastry.
  2. I use soya milk, but oat milk or dairy milk would both be suitable.
  3. The original gremolata was made with finely sliced spring onion, parsley and lemon zest, which is equally good.
  4. I had pastry left over from the above quantity - enough to make a couple of individual tart cases for another time.
Focus on Flavour https://www.focusonflavour.com/

Christmas Leftovers? Squash, Stilton and Quince Tart – 410 calories a portion

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Continuing my theme of working through the Christmas Leftovers…. I had one of those serendipitous moments when I picked up a cookbook (Ottolenghi’s Plenty More, a welcome Christmas gift), opened a page at random and realised that I had all the ingredients that I needed. Of course I couldn’t resist making some little changes… a little less oil, a little less richness by reducing the cream and quantity of cheese. So his Membrillo and Stilton Quiche has become Squash, Stilton and Quince Tart  (too many Ss and Qs to leave it called Quiche…).

Squash, Stilton and Quince Tart

Continuing with my current passion for making my own pastry, I rustled up some light and crumbly shortcrust – but you can use ready made and it will still taste good.

I used butternut squash, which has been waiting for me to find an inspiring recipe, but you could use any kind of pumpkin or winter squash. I may try something similar with other vegetables like beetroot. In fact, the idea of a roasted vegetable and blue cheese crustless quiche has me rather excited now…

If you have a chunk of Stilton left, that is perfect for this. Actually I was surprised at how mellow it became after cooking, perhaps because I am more accustomed to using Roquefort as a blue cheese, which is indeed a good deal more tangy. That or any strong blue cheese would make acceptable alternatives.

Perhaps you are lucky enough to have your own Quinces and have made yourself some Quince Paste or Jelly or Cheese, or have been given some for Christmas? I find it keeps well for months in the fridge, but it also freezes well. You may find it in the Spanish section of a store as Membrillo, or in French it is called Pate de Coing. If you don’t have any you could perhaps substitute some other thick fruit jelly or I thought of using some chunks of stoned dates. Failing that, some chunks of peeled pear could be an interesting match, but the sticky sweetness of the quince paste does work beautifully.

Spinach, Fennel and Pomegranate Salad

I served it with a lively ‘tricolour’ salad of young Spinach leaves with finely shredded Fennel and topped with Pomegranate Seeds, drizzled with a balsamic vinaigrette. 

Absolutely delicious seasonal fare. Each serving only 410 calories for the tart and 72 for the salad, so this could even be a meal on a fast day.

Squash, Stilton and Quince Tart with Spinach, Fennel and Pomegranate Salad

So with thanks to Ottolenghi, here is my version of Squash, Stilton and Quince Quiche:-

Squash, Stilton and Quince Tart
Serves 6
A luscious mixture of mellow blue cheese and sumptuous quince jelly adorns the golden cubes of squash in this festive season tart.
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Prep Time
1 hr
Cook Time
40 min
Total Time
1 hr 40 min
Prep Time
1 hr
Cook Time
40 min
Total Time
1 hr 40 min
Ingredients
  1. 1 tbsp olive oil
  2. 500g butternut squash or pumpkin, peeled and deseeded
For the pastry
  1. 150g plain flour
  2. 75g unsalted butter
  3. ½ tsp salt
  4. extra flour for rolling out
For the filling
  1. 125g Blue Stilton Blue Cheese, crumbled
  2. 50g Quince Paste (or Membrillo), cut into small cubes
  3. 125ml Creme Fraiche
  4. 125ml milk
  5. 3 eggs
  6. sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 200c (fan).
  2. Cut the squash into smallish cubes, about 2cm, spread on a baking tray and toss in the olive oil.
  3. Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes, turning half way, until soft and starting to brown at the edges, then leave aside to cool.
  4. Meanwhile, make the pastry.
  5. Chop the butter into the flour and salt and then rub together until like breadcrumbs.
  6. Add enough cold water to just form a dough.
  7. Roll out thinly in a floured surface and transfer to a lightly greased or non stick 24cm flan dish.
  8. Leave to chill in the fridge for about 20 minutes.
  9. Turn the oven down to 180c (fan).
  10. Cover the pastry with baking parchment and beans and blind bake for about 10 minutes, then remove the paper and bake for a further 5 - 10 minutes until lightly cooked.
  11. Whisk the eggs with the cream and milk and season to taste.
  12. Distribute the squash over the pastry, then the stilton and pieces of quince jelly and pour over the egg mixture.
  13. Bake for about 40 minutes until set and golden.
  14. Serve warm.
Notes
  1. I found that 250ml of liquid and 3 eggs was a little too much for my 25cm flan dish, but I have left this quantity in case yours is a little deeper.
  2. You could add some herbs to the baking squash to vary the flavour.
  3. Try some chopped stoned dates if you don't have any quince paste.
  4. Some chopped walnuts or pine nuts would make an interesting crunchy addition.
  5. The calorie count for this recipe card is somewhat different from my own calculations. I'm not sure why!
Adapted from Membrillo and Stilton Quiche by Ottolenghi
Adapted from Membrillo and Stilton Quiche by Ottolenghi
Focus on Flavour https://www.focusonflavour.com/

Seasonal lusciousness – Walnut and Chestnut Tart, with Figs

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I was reminded of my alternative to Pecan Pie recently, but when I looked at the recipe I had included in my first book, Focus on Flavour, I realised that it was very calorific and much richer than we have become used to. So here is my (somewhat) reduced calorie version. It is still at least 300 calories per portion, so not something for a fast day….

I used ready rolled brisée pastry for mine, but you could use a basic shortcrust or sweet shortcrust pastry.  I have noted the ingredients in order to get the calorie count to match what the packet told me… 

Because we have so many fabulous figs in the garden this year, I have added two, which gave a really lovely flavour and texture for variety, but it would be equally good without them.  I served it with a fromage blanc and walnut ice cream. A lovely seasonal weekend treat.

Walnut and Chestnut Tart, with Figs
Serves 12
A lighter alternative to a pecan pie, using walnuts and chestnut cream
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Prep Time
30 min
Cook Time
40 min
Total Time
1 hr 10 min
Prep Time
30 min
Cook Time
40 min
Total Time
1 hr 10 min
For the brisée pastry
  1. 140g flour
  2. 55g butter
  3. 6g sugar
  4. water
For the filling
  1. 70g unsalted butter
  2. 100g sweetened Chestnut Cream
  3. 125ml single cream
  4. 2 tbsp rum
  5. 2 eggs
  6. 200g walnut pieces (including 13 halves)
  7. 2 fresh figs, each cut into 6 wedges.230g brisée pastry, ready rolled
Instructions
  1. Line a 24cm flan dish with baking parchment and pastry and prick the bottom with a fork.
  2. Chill for 20 minutes.
  3. Preheat the oven to 180c (fan)
  4. Cover the pastry with another layer of baking parchment and baking beans or rice and bake blind for 15 minutes.
  5. Remove the paper and beans and return to the oven for 10 minutes.
  6. Meanwhile, warm the butter, chestnut cream, cream and rum in a saucepan over low heat, stirring until well integrated, but not hot.
  7. Beat the eggs lightly then stir into the mixture.
  8. Add the chopped walnuts, reserving some halves for decoration, and mix together.
  9. Pour the mixture into the pastry case and decorate with the figs and walnut halves.
  10. Baked for 40 minutes until golden brown.
  11. Leave to cool and serve with creme fraiche, fromage blanc or ice cream.
Notes
  1. You can buy sweetened chestnut cream in tubes or cans. Alternatively, you may find the unsweetened variety, in which case you could add honey or maple syrup to taste.
Focus on Flavour https://www.focusonflavour.com/