FLOWER POT KITCHEN: SEASONAL APPLE TART WITH CREME PATISSIERE

21 Sept 2012

SEASONAL APPLE TART WITH CREME PATISSIERE

FABULOUS SEASONAL APPLE TART

INGREDIENTS

4 eating apples sliced

2 tbsp apricot jam

CREME PATISSIERE

6 egg yolks

125g caster sugar

30g cornflour

550ml milk

1 vanilla pod split

15g butter

Whisk the egg yolks and then add half the sugar and whisk till pale and creamy, sift in the cornflour and mix together. Add the milk, remaining sugar and split vanilla pod and seeds into a saucepan and bring to a simmer and stir to dissolve the sugar, then strain. Pour the hot strained milk over the egg yolks stirring fast and constantly, add back to the saucepan and simmer for a couple of minutes stirring all the time, the mix will become smooth and thick, stir in the butter at this stage and leave to cool in a fresh bowl. Cover the top of the bowl with clingfilm, this is to stop a skin forming.

SWEET PASTRY

350g plain flour

pinch of salt

150g unsalted butter chilled diced

100g icing sugar

2 eggs beaten

Sift the flour and salt on to your work top, pull up into a mound, make a well in the centre and put the butter there, using a pecking action with your fingertips and thumb work the butter only until it is soft, add the sugar into the butter and mix together, now add the eggs to the butter and mix well, now start to incorporate the flour by knocking it into the butter mixture gradually using a chopping action until you have a rough dough. Bring together and knead a couple of times to make the dough smooth, wrap in clingfilm and place in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

Roll out the pastry and line your tin and then place the tin in the fridge for a further 10 minutes. Blind bake the pastry case with baking beans for 10 minutes at 190 degrees, then remove the baking paper and beans and bake for a further 5 minutes.

Place the creme patissiere in the bottom of the pastry case and place the sliced apples in ever decreasing circles on top, bake in the oven for approx 20 minutes or until the apples are golden and the pastry is cooked. Melt the apricot jam and pass through a sieve then brush over the apples to give a sweet shine.

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LIFE MY PASSION

Welcome to my daily life of cooking, one winters day many years ago my family and I were all inspired by a back to back rainy day of River Cottage this got us to stop talking about and start actually doing, suddenly three weeks later eight vegetable beds were dug, greenhouse erected and our first vegetables were propagating, this was the start to raising and growing our own food, our fabulous son Oscar changed our path in life which lead us to sell our small thriving restaurant of 10 yrs and to start our new life (Terrifying!) a life of the self sufficient in touch with nature and seasons, taking a step back and looking forward to a slower change of pace and making the most of every moment.

My passion for cooking was stronger than ever and having time at home with Oscar I found I had a new direction and I was no longer striving for perfection, I was suddenly very passionate for the enjoyment of the other side of food, something I had not realised, being the Chef/Cook and every other duty of your own small restaurant made me see that I never actually took time to cook what I wanted!

So there I was muddy boots and hands digging deep in more than one sense and I found myself transported back in time to where everyone grew some of their own food, it is a wonderful world with a real sense of achievement and loss, Slugs Snails and Caterpillars! But thats another story! Childhood memories of summers when I lived with my grand parents reminded me of so much that I had learnt about the make do and mend generation that I had forgotten.

Now as a family we love our free wild food days where we gather what nature has provided, have gone from being mini mini garden urban small holders, who did raised pigs at home because we could not wait to find land and supporting ourselves from our garden to now owning a very small farm that allows us to grow more vegetables for the whole of our family and neighbours, raise our own gorgeous Gloucestershire Old Spot pigs, (Sausages!) and pets! Dorset Down sheep, chickens for eggs and pet goats! Suddenly having large quantities of produce started to wake up the Cook in me!

The Cook was awake that part of me that wants to cook for the masses and I found myself setting up Flowerpot Kitchen, a Farmers Market Stall, I wanted to use our honest raised meats and make old fashioned pork pies, rabbit pies and game pies from the local game keeper along with old fashioned techniques and the best hot water crust pastry. This in turn grew to a small cottage industry from home weekly supplying three farm shops and a deli along with also attending three farmers markets A few years later there came a time when my son Oscar's health changed and it was an easy decision to stop.

I still hold the occasional pop up 40 seater restaurant or gourmet lunch which we do for local charities for the love of sharing food and to remind that Cook in me why I love our go slower self sufficient life!

So here I am sitting amoung the vegetables watching the chickens loving that every season nature teaches me something new and that nature is in charge! She has taught me to just go with it and grow. Give it a try from a tray of salad on your windowsill to a few tomato plants it all counts.