Ever since I saw Nancy Birtwhistle at the BBC Good Food Show I've wanted to try out her recipe for a Sage & Onion Tart. As luck would have it, Christmas left me with some onions that needed using up. It also left me with leeks and brie, so I decided to add those in too because yum! This is a great recipe because it's easy to make, it's low cost, a vegetarian dish, and it makes a delicious lunch or dinner. I ate it cold with salad and sweet potato fries, but you could also serve it hot, either way you're going to enjoy a tasty meal!
I recently got sent this quiche tin from Boswells & Co, who are a large department store in Oxford. The tin is the 20cm Masterclass Crusty Bake Quiche Tin, which has holes all over it to allow moisture to escape and ultimately aid you in avoiding the dreaded soggy bottom! It's also non stick and comes with a 20 year guarantee, so they must be pretty confident about it's long lasting ability.
I started by making the pastry. I didn't follow Nancy's recipe as I have my own pastry recipe that always works for me. I rubbed 85g butter into 175g plain flour, then added 1 egg.
I combined the mixture until it came together into a dough. I wrapped it in cling film and chilled it in the fridge while I got on with preparing the filling.
I made less filling than Nancy too as the Masterclass tin is 20cm and Nancy's recipe was for a 22cm tin. I cooked a 525g mixture of leek and onion (use whatever you have, I had 2 onions and 1 leek) in a pan on a medium heat along with 2 tbsp of butter, 1/4 tsp allspice and a pinch of salt. Once the onions and leeks were soft I took them off the heat to cool slightly.
In a bowl I whisked up 3 eggs, 1 tbsp parmesan and 95ml single cream.
In a food processor I whizzed up the cooked onions and leeks along with 100ml single cream.
I added the onion mixture to the egg mixture, and then added 1 tbsp freshly chopped sage leaves.
I set the filling aside while I rolled out the pastry between two sheets of cling film. This stops your pastry from drying out, and saves on cleaning up all that flour from the work surface!
I lined the tin and trimmed the edges.
I baked the pastry case for 10 minutes on 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6 with baking beans. Nancy had a great tip about screwing the baking paper into a ball as it's easier to line the tin with it.
I removed the baking paper and beans and baked the pastry case again for 7 minutes at the same temperature.
I filled the pastry case with the filling, then arranged slices of brie on top and sprinkled with some more fresh sage. I baked this on 180C350F/Gas Mark 4 for 35 minutes until golden brown.
The quiche came out of the tin extremely easily, and the pastry had a lovely golden color.
The quiche was very tasty, with a milder onion flavor than I expected, but I was pleasantly surprised. The melted brie on top was my favorite bit, and the crisp pastry came a close second! This is a very economical recipe due to the cheap ingredients used, and this quiche would feed 4 people. If you're not a brie fan you could top it with cheddar, or some parmesan.
I'm entering this into Tea Time Treats hosted by Lavender & Lovage and Hedgecombers, as this recipe would work great on a picnic and is a budget meal.
I'm also entering into Credit Crunch Munch, hosted by Fab Food 4 All and Fuss Free Flavours, as this is an economical recipe and I used up leftovers.
I am also entering into The No Waste Food Challenge hosted by Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary for the same reason.
And into Cook Once Eat Twice hosted by Searching For Spice as the quiche kept great in the fridge and I ate it for two evening meals.