SouthseaScene

Last weekend I was actually planning to make a crab and Gruyere tart, but unfortunately, there was no crab to be found apart from a small tub that will cost a fortune to make. Always happy to use ingredients that are at hand, I decided to make the tart with asparagus instead. Now is the season for local asparagus, that tastes slightly sweeter. For the pastry: 225g plain flour 110 g chilled butter a small glass of chilled water For the filling: 3 medium eggs, lightly beaten 200 ml double cream a pinch of nutmeg 100g Gruyere cheese, grated salt and pepper a bunch of fresh asparagus, about 12 stalks Preheat the oven to 190 degrees Celcius and grease an 8-inch (20cm) baking tin with a removable base. To make the pastry, sift the flour into a bowl, then chop the chilled butter into small pieces and drop them into the bowl. Cover the butter pieces with flour and gently rub them with your fingertips until they resemble rough breadcrumbs. Add a pinch of salt and then slowly, a teaspoon at a ti...

When big fat and juicy British asparagus are in season, make this simple dish to take advantage of the subtle delicious flavour.  This recipe is for 2 people. Ingredients: A bunch of asparagus 150ml double cream 2 cloves of garlic, peeled but leave whole 30g Parmesan, grated 150g tagliatelle Trim the asparagus by snapping the stem with your fingers. Keep the tips aside. Boil the rest of the broken stems for 3 Min. In a separate pan heat the cream with the whole garlic to infuse the flavours. Add the boiled stem into the cream and blitz with a hand blender. Boil a pan of water for the tagliatelle and at the last 2 Min of boiling, add the asparagus tips. Drain and add pasta and tips to the cream mixture. Add Parmesan and seasonings and serve!