CURRENTLY on our menu at Bill Oldfield's, are these rather delightful tarts make a fabulous starter, light lunch or supper dish. In this recipe, I’ve referred to four individual tarts, but if you wanted to make one tart and divide it, use the pastry to line an 8in or 9in diameter flan dish.

For the pastry:

125g cold butter, cut into dice

1 egg, beaten

250g plain flour

Salt and freshly-ground black pepper

2-3 tbsp of water

For the filling:

50g leeks, washed and thinly sliced

A knob of butter

Three eggs

150mls cream

50g blue cheese, crumbled or cut into small pieces

Freshly-ground black pepper and maybe a little salt.

Method:

Heat the oven to 170C (gas mark 3). Make the pastry by placing the egg and butter into a food processor and blitzing until smooth.

Add the flour and a pinch of salt and black pepper. Then, with the motor running, pour in the water until the mixture comes together in a ball. Remove from the processor, wrap it in cling film and allow it to rest for 30 minutes in the fridge.

Roll out the pastry until it’s about the thickness of a £1 coin and use to line four 10cm (4in) tartlet rings. Cut discs of greaseproof paper to fit inside each one. Scatter a few dried beans over each disc or use a handful of pasta to weigh the pastry down. Bake for five to ten minutes or until the pastry is cooked. Remove the greaseproof paper and allow to cool.

To make the filling, melt a knob of butter in a saucepan and stir in the sliced leeks.

Allow to cook over a low heat for five to ten minutes until the leeks are soft and tender.

In a bowl, beat the eggs with the cream and then stir in the cheese and warm leeks along with a little pepper. Depending on how salty your cheese is, further salt may not be necessary.

Be careful not to add too much.

Spoon the mixture into the tartlet cases and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until set.