Recipe of the month: savoury plait
Plaits can be savoury or sweet and there is a huge variety of possible fillings. This particular recipe is for a savoury plait and depending on how hungry you are is for three or four people.
For the shortcrust pastry: 120 g fat (butter or margarine) 420 g plain flour 1/2 tsp salt Water to mix
(or bought pastry that only needs to be rolled out) For the filling: 1 finely sliced medium onion
1 roughly chopped medium tomato or six whole cherry tomatoes.
300g sliced mushrooms
150g grated cheese (Vista Alegre fine cheese, for example)
100g tuna in flakes
Basil, pepper and salt to taste (or other herbs to taste)
2 tablespoons olive oil
200ml milk
30g butter
2 tablespoons plain flour
Presentation:
1 beaten egg for basting
Preheat oven to 180/200ºC
Make the pastry by mixing the flour and the salt in a large bowl, and adding cubes of the vegetable fat. Using your fingertips, rub the fat into the flour until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Using a knife, stir in just enough of the cold water to bind the dough to- gether. Wrap the dough in Clingfilm and chill in the fridge for about 15 minutes.
Then, roll the pastry out to a rectangle and trim to approx. 12" x 9".
Using a sharp knife, make 3/4" wide slits in both sides, slightly obli- quely. The slits should be 3" long.
Add olive oil to a frying pan and lightly fry the onion and mushrooms with the herbs and then add the tuna.
In the meantime make a bechamel: melt the 30g butter in a frying pan, sprinkle the flour over the melted butter stirring continually and when reaches a paste texture, slowly add the milk stirring all the time. A thick bechamel would be ideal so use more or less milk if necessary.
Place the onion mixture in the centre of the rolled out pastry in an ob- long without covering the slits, spread the bechamel on top, dot the cherry tomatoes over the bechamel and, lastly, sprinkle on top the grated cheese.
Start plaiting the pastry, working from one end to the other.
Glaze the plait with beaten egg,
Bake in a pre-heated hot oven (200C/180 fan/400F, Gas mark 6) for 30-35 minutes, until the pastry is golden. and the filling cooked through.
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