I bought myself a brand new, fluted loose-bottomed tart tin this week and couldn’t wait to use it!
I decided to make a spinach, cheese & onion tart from a recipe that I tore out of a Telegraph magazine a few weeks ago.
A couple of spoonfuls of English mustard adds a nice piquancy and depth of flavour.
We got six, good portions from the tart which can be eaten either hot or cold.
It’s perfect for a light lunch with a few salad leaves – and can be made well in advance if you’ve got guests coming and don’t want any last-minute stress.
We had it the following night as more substantial evening meal pairing it with paprika-salted potato skins and mixed salad.
There are all kinds of flavour variations possible using this basic method – bacon, chorizo, smoked salmon, goat’s cheese, mushroom…
Very delicious and very versatile.
Spinach, cheese & onion tart
Ingredients
For the pastry
- 200 g plain flour
- 100 g wholemeal flour
- 150 g cold butter cubed
- pinch of salt
- 3 tbs cold water
For the filling
- 30 g butter
- 550 g onions peeled and very finely sliced
- 6 cloves garlic sliced
- 450 g spinach
- 2 whole large eggs plus 3 egg yolks
- 300 ml double cream
- 2 tsp English mustard
- 150 g mature cheddar grated
Instructions
For the pastry
- Put the flour, butter and pinch of salt into a food processor and pulse until it resembles breadcrumbs
- Add the cold water, a tablespoon at a time, pulsing between each addition until the mixture comes together into a ball
- Shape into a thick disc, wrap in clingfilm and refrigerate for half an hour
For the filling
- Melt the 30g of butter in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan and gently cook the onion and garlic, with a little salt, until slightly golden, then add a good splash of water and cover
- Sweat on a low heat until the onions are soft and sloppy - around half an hour - stirring occasionally
- Preheat the oven to 180ºC/Gas mark 4 and put a metal baking sheet inside
- Roll out the pastry and line a loose-bottomed tart tin 27cm diameter or 20 x 28cm (keep any leftover bits of pastry)
- Chill for 20 minutes
- Take the lid off the onions, turn up the heat and let the excess moisture bubble off and the onions cook until they are golden and sweet
- Wash the spinach and cook in a covered pan with just the water left clinging to it, about 4 minutes over a medium heat, until wilted
- Drain in a colander and leave to cool
- Line the pastry case with parchment paper, fill with baking beans and blind-bake on the preheated tray for 15 minutes
- Remove the paper and beans and cook for a further 7-10 minutes
- Remove from the oven and use any leftover raw pastry to patch any cracks
- Squeeze the excess moisture out of the spinach, chop roughly, season and add to the onions
- Mix the eggs, yolks, cream and mustard and season well
- Spread the onion and spinach in the tart case, sprinkle on the cheese and pour on the cream mixture
- Put back into the oven, on the baking sheet, for 30 minutes, until set in the middle and golden
- Allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving
