• You’ll need to collect about 225g/8oz bilberries. Remove stalks and stray leaves and rinse in a sieve.

  Dry carefully on some kitchen towel (Don’t use a tea towel unless you don’t mind it getting stained purple).

For the shortcrust pastry

• Put the flour and salt in a large bowl and add the cubes of butter
• Use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until you have a mixture that resembles coarse breadcrumbs with no large lumps of butter remaining
• Using a knife, stir in just enough of the cold water to bind the dough together
• Wrap the pastry in cling film and chill for 10-15 minutes before rolling out
• Flour the worktop and roll out the pastry to about 1/2cm thick and 25cm/10inches in diameter (or large enough to fit over the dish you’re using)
• Carefully lift the pastry and lay it over your dish, moulding it to the bottom & sides
• Cut off any excess bits using a sharp knife
• Pour in the washed & dried fresh bilberries

For the custard

• Heat the milk gently in a pan
• Whisk the eggs & egg yolks
• Slowly add the milk to the egg mixture whisking continuously (make sure the milk’s not too hot or the eggs will scramble!)
• Pour the mixture carefully through a sieve on to the bilberries in the dish
• Preheat the oven to 175ºC/350ºF/Gas Mark 4. Cook the flan for 45 minutes or until the top begins to brown nicely. When cool, sprinkle a tablespoon of caster sugar over the top