Try Ian Alexander’s seasonal take on the traditional French galette. Bursting with summer flavour the green vegetables beautifully compliment the creamy richness of an organic brie.
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
500g all butter puff pastry (pre-rolled)
2 eggs
200g Brie
Sea salt & ground black pepper
3 spears of asparagus
250g peas
200g podded broad beans
Small bunch of mint
Juice of 2 lemons
1 green chilli
150g full fat cream cheese
Small bunch of coriander
Small bunch of basil
2 cloves of garlic
Method
To prepare the pastry
Cut out a rectangle of the puff pastry approx 30cm/15cm and place into an oven tray. Press a design with the back of a fork all the way around the edge of the tart, and prick all over the middle of the pastry to stop it rising in the oven too much. Crack one of the eggs into a small bowl, and add an extra egg yolk and a pinch of sea salt. Whisk, and then the wash is ready to be brushed onto the pastry. Brush the egg wash, and then cook the pastry until golden brown in an oven at 180c. When cooked allow to cool, and then cut around the inside edge of the border of the tart and remove the top layer of pastry (so the tart looks like a picture frame with space for the filling to be added).
For crushed bean filling
Add the herbs (retaining a few leaves for garnish), garlic, lemon juice and chili to a food processor and blend until a rough paste is achieved. Then add the cream cheese and salt and pepper, blend to combine and then remove from the processor and place in a mixing bowl. Then puree the broad beans and peas, add to the mixing bowl. Mix the herb and cheese mixture into the beans, adjust the seasoning and then spread into the pastry tart case.
Top the tart with small wedges of brie, shaved asparagus, scattered fresh peas, and broad beans and picked herb leaves. Drizzle with olive oil and a sprinkle of black pepper and serve.
