Cauliflower and Le Gruyère AOP tartlets
- Starter
- Medium
- 6
- 60 minutes
PT1H
These pretty little tarts taste as good as they look, filled with a cauliflower purée, butter-roasted cauliflower florets and a silky Gruyère cheese sabayon. They also contain cauliflower fungus – a wild mushroom which looks a lot like the brassica – but you could always replace this with more cauliflower if you can't find any.
Ingredients
Pastry
- 250g of plain flour
- 50g of lard
- 75g of salted butter
- 1 tsp icing sugar
- 1 pinch of salt
- 1 egg , lightly beaten with 3 tbsp of milk
Filling
- 1 cauliflower
- 200g of salted butter
- 100g of double cream
Le Gruyère AOP Sabayon
- 4 egg yolks
- 500g of Gruyère , finely grated
- 100g of milk
- 1 pinch of cayenne pepper
To finish
- 100g of cauliflower fungus , cleaned
- 1 knob of salted butter
- nasturtium leaves , micro cress and edible flowers
Equipment
- Blender
- iSi whip
- 7.5cm fluted tart tins (6)
- Baking beans
Method
1
Begin the pastry 4 hours in advance so it has time to rest. Place the flour, lard, butter, icing sugar and salt into a food processor and pulse until it resembles breadcrumbs
- 250g of plain flour
- 50g of lard
- 75g of salted butter
- 1 tsp icing sugar
- 1 pinch of salt
2
Pour in the egg and milk and pulse again until a dough forms. Tip out onto the surface and bring together into a ball, but don't over work the dough. Wrap in cling film and leave to rest in the fridge for 2 hours
- 1 egg , lightly beaten with 3 tbsp of milk
3
Once the pastry has rested, roll it out until 2mm thick and, using a 9-10cm round cutter, cut out 6 circles. Line the tarts then leave in the fridge to rest for a further 2 hours
4
Preheat an oven to 165°C/gas mark 3. Line the rested pastry cases with greaseproof paper and fill with baking beans or dry rice. Blind-bake for 15 minutes, then remove the paper and baking beans and leave to cool
5
While the pastry cooks and cools, prepare the filling. Cut 18 small florets from the cauliflower and place in a pan with 100g of the butter. Place a lid on and leave gently steam and caramelise for 30 minutes
- 1 cauliflower
- 100g of salted butter
6
Finely dice the rest of the cauliflower and place in a pan with the remaining 100g of butter. Sweat until soft, then add the double cream and bring to the boil
- 100g of double cream
- 100g of salted butter
7
Transfer the cream mixture to a blender and blitz to a smooth purée. Taste and season with salt, then pass through a fine sieve and keep warm
8
To make the Gruyère sabayon, set up a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water. Add the egg yolks and whisk continuously, ensuring they remain at a low temperature and do not scramble
9
Once thickened and warm, add the cheese bit by bit until emulsified into the yolks. Then add the milk and a pinch of cayenne and salt to taste
- 500g of Gruyère , finely grated
- 100g of milk
- 1 pinch of cayenne pepper
10
Once the sabayon has completely warmed through, transfer to an Isi cream whipper and charge with 2 canisters. Keep the whipper in a bowl of warm water to keep warm
11
To cook the cauliflower fungus, melt the butter in a frying pan and gently cook the fungus with a pinch of salt
- 1 knob of salted butter
- 100g of cauliflower fungus , cleaned
12
To assemble, spoon the purée into the tartlet cases and arrange the cauliflower florets and mushrooms in a circle around the edge of each tartlet. Finish with the sabayon in the centre and decorate with the cresses and flowers
- nasturtium leaves , micro cress and edible flowers
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Cauliflower and Le Gruyère AOP tartlets
