A lovely combination of flavours improved by being encased in Maggie Beer‘s sour cream pastry.
Make the pastry according to the recipe (it works very well with light sour cream too). Roll the pastry out and cut a circle for the bottom of a springform cake tin and some strips for the sides and line the tin making sure there are no gaps. Remove as many outer leaves as possible from 6 brussel sprouts and set aside. In a fry-pan heat some oil and butter and fry 1 diced leek, 1 diced onion and 3 cloves of garlic until the onion wilts. Add the sliced insides of the brussel sprouts and cook for a few minutes more. Deglaze with some white wine, allowing it to completely evaporate. Season with salt and pepper, remove from the heat and set aside. In a food processor combine 200g (7 oz) of cottage cheese, 155g (5½ oz) of crumbled Stilton cheese, 4 eggs, ½ a cup of milk and 3 teaspoons of cornflour (cornstarch). Process until smooth then combine with the leeks and pour into the prepared pastry shell. In a small bowl toss the brussel sprout leaves with a little oil, salt and pepper. Scatter the leaves over the top of the tart along with a handful of walnuts. If the pastry is higher than the filling bend the edges of the pastry down over the filling. Bake in a moderate oven for 45-60 minutes until the pastry has some colour and the filling is set.
These roasted beetroots and carrots make a good contrast to the tart.
Cut 1 beetroot and 3 carrots into wedges. Drizzle with equal parts olive oil and red wine vinegar, add 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast for 1 hour and serve on a bed of roquette.
michelle picker cooks 