- Time 2 hours
- Difficulty Medium
Ingredients
- 280g / 10oz plain flour
- 140g / 5oz cold butter
- 1 egg white, lightly beaten
- 100g / 3 ½oz Barber’s 1833 cheddar, grated
- 1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
- 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 100g / 3 ½oz crab meat (mixture of white and brown meat according to your taste)
- 40g / 1 ½oz samphire
- 4 medium eggs
- 100ml / 3 ½oz crème fraiche
- 100ml / 3 ½oz milk
- Freshly ground black pepper
Method
- To make the pastry, rub together the flour and butter with your fingertips until it looks like breadcrumbs. Add 8 tbsp cold water, then bring everything together with your hands until just combined.
- Heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas mark 6. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface to a round about 5cm larger than a 25cm tart case. Use your rolling pin to lift it up, then drape it over the tart case so there is an overhang of pastry on the sides. Push the pastry into the edges and sides of the tin then chill it in the fridge for 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile fry the chopped onion in the olive oil until it is soft and sweet but not browned. Put it on a plate to cool.
- Lightly prick the base of the tart with a fork, line the tart case with a large circle of greaseproof paper or foil, then fill with baking beans. Blind-bake the tart for 20 minutes, remove the paper and beans, repair any cracks with leftover pastry then continue to cook for 5-10 minutes until brown. Trim the pastry edges to make it look neat. Brush with the egg white and then bake it for another five minutes, until the case is crisp.
- Spread the onion mixture over the base of the pastry case and then sprinkle over the grated cheddar and crab meat. Rinse the samphire well under running water, remove the woody ends and cut the remainder into lengths of 2-3cm. Add it to the onion, cheese and crab.
- Beat the eggs well with the crème fraiche and milk and season with the pepper. Pour this custard into the tart case and ensure that the filling, especially the samphire, is pushed under the custard so that it doesn’t burn. Bake in the oven for around 25 minutes, until the filling is set.
Serve warm or cold.
With thanks to Fromage Homage