Katy dreamt this one up a few months ago and we’ve cooked a few iterations of it to get the recipe just right. It’s part vegcentric quiche, part savoury bakewell tart, and even part treacle tart in terms of the method. It’s very versatile as you can change the flavour of the chutney you use at the base, choose a different cheese each time you make it, and pick whichever fruit or veg is in season for the top; so far we have tried it with quince and squash, as well as wintery pears.
The rosemary and rye pastry is our absolute favourite – and picking a favourite pastry, for us, is near impossible! It’s nutty, crumbly, deeply savoury, and fragrant. Heaven!
And the wine pairing?
Well, we’ve gone for the ultimate seasonal pairing here with a Beaujolais Nouveau! It’s Beaujolais Nouveau day as we type this up which is very pleasing indeed. Beaujolais is made from the humble but fabulous Gamay grape; these young wines are light, fragrant, fresh and fruity with plenty of red fruit flavours – cherries, raspberries and violets. They have fine, silky tannins and just a little grip in the mouth.
This is a contrasting pairing; the tart, fruity ‘pop’ of the wine contrasts the salty Roquefort very nicely. It’s often served slightly chilled too, and this refreshing temperature helps to cut through rich buttery pastry and walnuts.
Prep time: 30 mins
Cook time: 75 mins
Recipe sufficient for 6 servings, or a deep-fill 20 cm tart case
Ingredients:
For the pastry:
- 150 g whole grain rye flour
- 100 g light spelt flour
- 125g cold butter
- 3-4 sprigs of fresh rosemary
- 4 tbsp cold water
- 1 egg yolk – keep the white for brushing the pastry
For the filling:
- 80 g walnuts (¾ cup)
- 120 g coarse sourdough breadcrumbs
- 60 g butter
- ½ tsp flakey sea salt
- 3 eggs
- 100 g Roquefort cheese
Method:
- Start by making the pastry. Strip the rosemary leaves from their stalks then finely chop, and dice the cold butter. Sieve the flours and sea salt into a large mixing bowl. Rub in the diced butter using your fingertips until the mix resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Now add the egg yolk, chopped rosemary, and 4 tablespoons of cold water just to bring the pastry together. Try to handle things as little as possible to avoid the dough becoming tough. Keep the egg white to egg wash the tart case later.
- Lightly flour your work surface and roll out the dough until roughly 1 cm thick, no thicker. Roll the pastry back around the rolling pin then unroll this over the tart case. Gently encourage the pastry to line the base and sides, then use your thumb to trim the edges. Pop this in the fridge for 45 minutes, or the freezer for 10 minutes, and preheat the oven to 180C.
- Line your chilled pastry case with a circle of parchment paper and fill with baking beans. Blind bake for 14 minutes, then remove the paper and baking beans, egg wash the tart case all over with the beaten egg white and bake for a further 12-14 minutes until golden.
- While the pastry is baking you have time to make the filling. Toast the walnuts for 6-8 minutes then coarsely chop. If you don’t have sourdough breadcrumbs to hand, pop a few slices of bread in the hot oven to dry, then finely chop with your knife until the toast resembles coarse breadcrumbs.
- Use your fingers to rub the butter into the walnuts, breadcrumbs and sea salt until the mix resembles clumpy sand, then beat in the eggs one at a time. De-core and slice the pears and crumble the cheese. Fold ⅓ of the cheese into the breadcrumb mix.
- Spread your apple chutney in a generous layer all over the base of the tart, then use your hands to pop the filling into the tart evenly and without pushing all the chutney to the side.
- Place your sliced pears on top, then add the remaining crumbled Roquefort.
- Drizzle things generously with olive oil and season with sea salt, then pop back into the oven and bake at 180C for 35-45 mins or until golden and springy to the touch. Allow the tart to cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving. It will slice much easier once cool.
- Enjoy with a generous green salad and a glass of Beaujolais Nouveau. Cheers!
