Parmesan Tart Recipe

Wild garlic leaves add a fresh and aromatic edge to this creamy Parmesan tart recipe by Frances Atkins. Buy at farmers' markets or forage for yourself in the spring. An alternative to the wild garlic leaves would be to add half a clove of crushed garlic.

Ingredients

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Metric

Imperial

Tart filling

75g of Parmesan, finely grated, or vegetarian hard cheese
200g of celeriac
2 egg yolks
1 shallot, finely diced
75ml of whipping cream
3 wild garlic leaves

Pastry

250g of plain flour
150g of unsalted butter
4 egg yolks
2 tbsp of water, cold
butter for greasing
plain flour for dusting

Salad

2 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp of red wine vinegar
6 tbsp of light olive oil
1 white chicory, finely chopped
75g of pea sprout
1 preserved lemon, finely chopped

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Silicone paper
5cm tart cases

Preheat the oven to 180˚C/Gas mark 4

To make the pastry, put the flour in a large bowl and rub in the butter until a breadcrumb-like texture has been achieved

250g of plain flour
150g of unsalted butter

Add the egg yolks, one at a time, mixing in by hand. Add the water, a little at a time, until the dough forms a ball. Wrap the dough in cling film and rest for 10 minutes in the fridge

4 egg yolks
2 tbsp of water, cold

Grease the tart cases lightly with butter, then sprinkle with flour and place a circle of silicone paper on the bottom of each

butter for greasing
plain flour for dusting

Lightly flour a countertop and roll the chilled pastry out to about 2mm thick. Use it to line the prepared tart cases, then chill them in the fridge for about 10 minutes

When they’re cold, line the pastry cases with more silicone paper and uncooked beans or rice, then bake blind for 10 minutes. Turn the oven down to 160˚C/Gas mark 3

Peel and dice the celeriac

200g of celeriac

To make the filling, put the diced celeriac into a pan of boiling water and cook for 20 minutes until tender

Drain the cooked celeriac, retaining any of the cooking liquor, and purée in a food processor until smooth, adding a small amount of the warm cooking liquor to make a smooth purée if necessary

Press the purée through a sieve to ensure there are no unwanted fibres or lumps. Leave it to cool in the food processor bowl, then add the 2 egg yolks along with the finely diced shallot, cream and Parmesan

2 egg yolks
1 shallot, finely diced
75ml of whipping cream
75g of Parmesan, finely grated, or vegetarian hard cheese

Add in the wild garlic leaves, one by one, and mix in the food processor, tasting the mixture after each leaf is added. Pass through a sieve again

3 wild garlic leaves

To avoid spillage, place the tart cases on a baking tray in the hot oven and pour the mixture to the top of each case. Close the door and bake for 8 minutes so the filling is set, but not coloured

Meanwhile, make a classic French vinaigrette by mixing the mustard, vinegar and olive oil. Make a salad from the chopped chicory, pea sprouts and finely chopped preserved lemon, then dress with the vinaigrette