cookSmoked trout and fennel tart

The filling must be cooked only until it's just set. I've opted for some smoked fish and shaved fennel on top, but feel free to experiment - try sliced tomato and goat's cheese or jamón with shaved celery and carrots.
From: gourmettraveller.com.au. Originally from The Agrarian Kitchen by Rodney Dunn, published by Lantern. SERVES 8

1 baby fennel bulb
1 tbsp lemon juice
250 gm smoked trout or salmon
Savoury shortcrust pastry
250 gm plain flour
125 gm cold unsalted butter, diced
90 ml milk
1 egg, beaten
Filling
500 ml cream
200 ml milk
8 eggs

For savoury shortcrust pastry, combine flour, butter and ¾ tsp fine sea salt in a large bowl. Using your fingertips, rub in butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs, then add milk and gently mix to form a dough. Flatten into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour.

On a clean, lightly floured workbench, roll out pastry to 5mm thick and line a 22cm round flan tin, gently easing pastry into base and edges. Using a sharp knife, trim excess pastry, then refrigerate pastry shell for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 180C. Line pastry shell with baking paper and fill with pastry weights or dried beans, then blind-bake for 15 minutes. Remove baking paper and pastry weights, then return pastry shell to oven and cook for a further 5-10 minutes or until golden. Brush inside of pastry shell with beaten egg and return to oven for 5 minutes. Remove and reduce oven to 150C.

For filling, whisk together cream, milk, eggs and 1 tsp fine sea salt in a bowl. Pour into pastry shell and bake for 35-40 minutes or until just set.

Using a mandolin, thinly slice fennel and place in a bowl, then toss with lemon juice. Arrange smoked trout or salmon over tart, scatter fennel over and serve.

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