Former MasterChef winner Mat Follas of The Casterbridge in Dorchester shares a seasonal recipe with Seven Days readers 

Asparagus and Goat’s Cheese Tart

Prepare: 20 minutes

Cook: 30 minutes

Serves 8

Pastry:

  • 200g plain flour
  • 100g salted butter, kept cold in the fridge
  • Cold water, as needed
  • 2 egg yolks (keep the whites for glazing the pastry)

Filling:

  • 6 asparagus spears
  • 100g mild goat’s cheese
  • 150ml milk
  • 150ml double cream
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 egg yolks
  • Pinch of salt

For the pastry:

In a bowl, scrape the butter into small pieces then, whilst slowly adding the flour, press and mix the ingredients to make a crumble mixture. Once it’s crumbly, add the egg yolks and mix through to bind the mixture loosely. If the mixture will not bind together, add 1 tsp of cold water and continue to mix. Only add 1 tsp of water at a time and never more than 4 tsp of water in total.

Place the pastry on a piece of clingfilm, wrap tightly, then roll into a sausage shape and place in the fridge for 60 minutes.

We need to blind-bake the tart base. On a floured surface, roll out the pastry to a thickness of a £1 coin. Gently place the pastry in a floured tart tin and mould it into the corners with your fingers; don’t tidy the edges yet because the pastry will shrink when it is baked (save a little of the pastry in case cracks or holes form during the blind baking).

Prick with a fork all over to stop it from rising, and place in a preheated oven at 180°C for 8 minutes.

Remove from the oven, check for any holes or cracks and patch them with your spare pastry. Allow the tart to cool for 5 minutes, glaze it with the beaten egg white (this will seal the base of the tart) and place back in the oven for a further 2 minutes. Remove from the oven, and trim the edges with a sharp knife.

For the filling:

Make the custard by whisking together the eggs, egg yolks, cream, milk and salt. Whisk until it is smooth and fully combined. Cut five slices of goat’s cheese and set aside for decorating the tart. Crumble the rest of the goat’s cheese into the bowl and gently fold-in.

To finish:

Turn the oven down to 140°C. Pour the filling into the tart, decorate with the slices of goat’s cheese and the asparagus spears. Place the tart in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Check it’s cooked by lightly shaking the tin, the mixture should be firm but still a bit wobbly, like a jelly (it will continue to cook for a while once removed from the oven).