Asparagus tart with ricotta & dill

INGREDIENTS

300g or two big bunches of thin asparagus, woody ends trimmed (see notes)

50g finely grated pecorino or Parmigiano Reggiano

140g ricotta

2 egg yolks

2 tsp miso 

1 clove garlic, minced

Finely grated rind of 1 lemon

Handful dill, finely chopped

375g sheet of all-butter puff pastry, I use Careme  

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar (aged is nice too) 

Good drizzle of EVOO

S&P

METHOD

Preheat oven to 190 degrees. Take a large baking sheet and line with baking paper. Place the pastry on top and then lightly score with a sharp knife about 1cm border around from the all the edges making a nice border. Lightly prick the inside of the pastry with a fork. Set aside to bring to room temperature (see notes)

In a bowl mix together the ricotta, parmesan/pecorino, 1 egg yolk, miso, dill, lemon rind, salt and as much freshly ground pepper as you desire. Beat it all together with a fork until well combined and smooth. You don’t want a wet mix, but If it needs a little loosening, give it a good squeeze of lemon juice.

Spread the ricotta mix all over the inside of the pastry sheet keeping the border clear. Make sure it’s evenly covered and then line the asparagus up all the way along. You can put them all the same way up, or you can alternate top to bottom. Your call. Lightly drizzle on the EVOO and then lightly brush on the red wine vinegar. 

To make sure the edges puff up properly, get the second egg yolk and beat it lightly with a splash of water, and then lightly brush around the border so it gets a nice shine. Sprinkle over a pinch of sea salt and then pop in the oven.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, regularly checking until the pastry is golden and caramel and the asparagus are getting some nice colour too.

Allow to cool for about 5 minutes before adding on a little more parmesan and even a few sprigs of dill. 

Serve with a green salad with some sliced snow peas and some shaved radish for a pop of colour.

Buon appetito 🍋

NOTES: 

💫 If you trim all the asparagus so they’re the same length - it makes for a very pretty tart (just like you 😉)

💫💫 If buying @careme puff pastry or similar, make sure it’s a room temperature before baking. Otherwise you’ll have a soft, slightly undercooked centre which is fine, but not ideal.

You could also blind bake the pastry for about 5 minutes once you’ve done the border and scoring, before putting on the filling and asparagus and then baking again.