Ingredients
2 tbsp oil
60g walnut halves
3 tbsp runny honey (I would omit this or reduce it next time)
320g shortcrust pastry - bought or made
100g roughly chopped cavolo nero or savoy cabbage (stalks removed first)
2 large red onions, halved and then sliced
3 eggs, beaten
150ml cream
3 cloves garlic, crushed
small bunch flat leaf parsley, chopped (can be omitted)
100g Taleggio, sliced into slithers
Heat oven to 200C, mix the walnuts, honey (if using) and a large pinch of sea salt, spread on a parchment lined oven tray and bake for 8 minutes, turning ocassionally. Remove and cool. If not using honey, maybe a spoon of oil to help the salt stick
Roll out pastry and line a 24cm non-stick tart tin. Chill it for 15 mins, then prick all over with a fork, line with parchment, fill with baking beans and blind bake for 20 mins. Remove the parchment and beans and then cook for 5 mins more until the base is dry. Remove from oven.
Heat the oil in a large pan, add the cabbage and onions and saute gently for 10 mins until soft. Season and take from the heat.
Whisk together eggs,cream and garlic with most of the parsley.
Pour the custard into the pastry case, add the cabbage and onion then top with the shredded cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 20 mins. Remove the foil and bake for a further 15 mins until golden and set. Remove from oven, top with the walnuts and serve.
Method
This again as a collision of available ingredients and wanting to try something new. The actual recipe was in one of those leaflets that Waitrose send out to try and get you buying ingredients - this was an Autumn baking one and the dish is essentially Autumnal. it is in some ways a riff on the potato, cabbage and taleggio dish I featured here which came from Two Greedy Italians series (RIP Antonio Carlucccio). The taleggio was in the fridge in anticiaption of repeating that dish but got used here instead.
Sp we know cabbage and taleggio go well together, and here it is pared with onion (an obvious) and given some textural contrast from the pastry shell. The walnuts also give a texture to the dish and in the original recipe (reproduced here) they are essentially candied. Personally I found them too sweet. If doing this again I would keep the walnuts for taste and texture but I would not candy them, it detracts from the overall umami of the dish.
Of course a dish like this is a hard sell to the offspring. Cabbage Quiche? You must be joking. I made it anyway and ate it myself over the course of a few days for dinner and lunch. It reheats well and is also good cold. Nice with a salad and boied potatoes, or whatever you fancy and good for a meat free monday. The rating is therefore mine alone...