Meeting the queen of tarts

FOOD:ANYONE WHO HAS seen Rachel Allen on TV, knows that she is a great baker. Anyone who reads this column knows I'm not. Rachel is an old school friend of mine and even back then, she was always baking pretty cookies and cakes, whilst I was desperately trying to be an angry vegetarian.

We recently caught up at our 20-year school reunion (yikes!) and as we queued up for our lunch, formica trays in hand, the familiar smell of the canteen came wafting back to all of us. Odours of fish and chips, cabbage and “Smash” potatoes, portioned out with an ice-cream scoop and pickled with dusty white pepper assailed our senses.

We hoped that Rachel’s presence might have upped the ante a little in the kitchen that day, or that if we asked nicely enough we could get an extra roast potato. The answer was a firm “No!” from a wall of dinner ladies who made us feel like we were 11 years of age again.

The food in school 20 years ago was so dreadful that most us who were boarders became vegetarian as the grub was a lot more edible. Boarding school is survival of the fittest in every sense and after three weeks straight of stuffed red peppers and cheddar quiche, we demanded better vegetarian grub.

A stand-off ensued, so we staged an angry boycott. Eventually, the canteen staff caved and “more imaginative” grub was promised. They started serving culinary delights such as bean goulash and veggie stir-fry. It was an exciting time and we felt entirely vindicated.

However, one batch of the bean goulash contained plenty of red kidney beans that hadn’t been soaked properly and the angry strikers fell, one by one. (Unsoaked kidney beans can make you very ill). Whether this was a genuine oversight or a warning shot across our bow, we’ll never know. But as all the veggies piled into sick bay, the vegetarian menu went back to the old stalwarts and no more was said.

Dinner ladies 1; Angry spoilt brats, 0.

But back to baking. I was recently watching Rachel teach some students how to roll out sweet pastry to line a tart tin before blind baking and she advised them to do it between two sheets of cling film. I tried out her handy tip when I made this hazelnut tart and have to say it is not gimmicky at all and works a treat.

Pastry chefs don’t have to resort to such tricks, simply because they are so darned skilled. But I was quite delighted to discover a really easy way to line a tin, especially as I was making a really buttery and soft pastry which (shame on me) I didn’t have time to chill for long enough. So if you have problems in this area, do give it a go as it works a treat. Cheers Rachel!

Hazelnut tart

Emma, our manager in itsa4, nicknamed this a Ferrero Rocher tart and she’s right. That’s exactly what it tastes of, especially if you serve it with some hot chocolate. Taken from a Skye Gyngnell recipe.

PASTRY:

250g plain flour

125g unsalted butter

30g caster sugar

2 egg yolks (large)

zest of 1 lemon

1 tsp vanilla extract

FILLING:

300g skinned, roasted hazelnuts

300g caster sugar

3 eggs

zest of 1 lemon

300g unsalted butter

Whizz all the pastry ingredients together in a food processor until they form a ball. Wrap it in cling film and chill for an hour. Roll out the pastry between two sheets of cling film. Peel the top sheet of cling off the rolled pastry, invert the pastry into a 25-centimetre tart tin and press it down to line the tin. Prick the base with a fork and chill again for 30 minutes. Line with grease-proof paper and some rice or beans and bake for 10 minutes at 180 degrees. Carefully remove the paper and hot beans/rice and bake for another few minutes to dry out the pastry. Set aside to cool while you make the filling.

Whiz all the filling ingredients until smooth – but still with some nutty texture. Don’t overprocess. You want some texture. Pour into the prepared tart tin, which you should place on a baking tray, and bake for 45 minutes at 190 degrees. If it starts to go too brown, turn down the oven. It should be a nice golden brown colour and almost have the texture of treacle tart. Serve warm or cold.

Fig tart

You can make this in a tart tin that measures 25-centimetres, or you can also use a baking tray. Whatever suits. This does not need to be rolled out very well, or blind baked.

200g plain flour

100g butter

175g caster sugar

pinch salt

1 egg yolk

1 tsp vanilla extract

10 figs

2 tbsp granulated sugar

150g apricot jam

In a food processor, make the pastry by pulsing the flour and butter until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add the sugar and salt, then pulse again. Add the yolk and the vanilla and keep processing until the pastry comes together and forms a ball. If it is a bit dry and won’t form a ball, add a tiny splash of cream or another egg yolk. Wrap in cling film and chill for 30 minutes or overnight. Preheat an oven to 180 degrees.

Cut the figs in half, then in quarters. Roll out the pastry and line the bottom of the tin, but leave the pastry quite thick. Don’t bother trying to line the sides, just the base, almost like you are rolling out pizza dough.

Arrange the fig slices on top, sprinkle them with sugar and bake for about 45 minutes, until puffed up slightly and golden brown.

Melt the jam with a few teaspoons of water over a gentle heat. When the tart is cool, glaze it with the jam and leave to cool fully before serving. dkemp@irishtimes.com

See also www.itsa.ie