Asparagus and shiitake tart

This lard shortcrust pastry is savoury and very short – the kind my mum made for pretty much every purpose when I was growing up. Even with a dessert, an unsweetened pastry like this is just the trick.

Credit: Alan Benson

• serves

  6

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  30 minutes

• difficulty

  Ace

Ingredients

• 4 eggs, beaten
• 250 g sour cream
• 2 bay leaves
• ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
• 15 fresh shiitake mushrooms, stalks removed
• 3 asparagus spears, trimmed, cut on an angle to 3cm lengths
• 1 garlic bulb, roasted, cloves separated
• 3 sprigs thyme, plus extra, to serve
• 40 g (⅓ cup) grated cheddar (substitute parmesan or gruyère)

Lard shortcrust pastry

• 300 g (2 cups) plain flour, sifted
• 75 g cold lard, roughly chopped (see Note)
• 75 g cold butter, roughly chopped

Chilling time 1 hour

Steeping time 30 minutes

You will need a 2 cm-deep, 30 cm x 20 cm tart pan for this recipe.

Instructions

To make pastry, process flour, lard, butter and a pinch of salt in a food processor until mixture resembles crumbs. Add 50 ml iced water and process until mixture comes together. Knead to form a firm dough, then shape into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 180°C. Roll out pastry on a lightly floured work surface and use to line a 2 cm-deep, 30 cm x 20 cm tart pan, trimming excess. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Cover pastry with baking paper and fill with dried beans or rice. Bake for 10 minutes, then remove beans and paper and bake for a further 5 minutes or until base is dry.

Meanwhile, whisk eggs and sour cream in a bowl. Add bay leaves, half the nutmeg and steep for 30 minutes. Discard bay leaves and season with salt and pepper.

Place mushrooms, asparagus and garlic evenly over cooked flan base. Carefully pour sour cream mixture between the mushrooms and asparagus, being careful not to overfill the pastry case. Sprinkle over remaining nutmeg, thyme and cheddar. Bake for 15 minutes or until mixture is set and browned slightly. Sprinkle with extra thyme and serve warm or at room temperature.

Note

•To make a vegetarian version substitute lard for additional butter.

Photography Alan Benson. Food preparation Jesse Eynon. Styling Michelle Crawford.

As seen in Feast magazine, November 2014, Issue 37.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.