Tarts are always so pretty and this fennel tart does not disappoint, especially when served with zesty multicoloured carrot ribbons that pop with colour and zing with taste.

Ingredients: half a bulb of fennel, 2 shallots, 10g dill, 2 multi-coloured carrots (purple, orange, white or yellow), handful of rocket.

From the larder: 1 sheet of short crust pastry (bought or make your own), 2 eggs, juice of ½ lemon or balsamic vinegar, oil and butter (optional: 50g goat’s cheese and 50ml cream).

Instructions:

• If you are making your own pastry, See recipe below.
• Preheat oven to 200 degrees C. Roll out pastry and lay in a shallow 9-inch pie dish or on a baking tray folding over to make your own edges. Cover with foil or baking beads and bake blind for 15 minutes. (A note on baking. The idea with blind baking is to crisp up the pastry so that it does not become soggy when you add the filling. The foil and baking beans, or rice, which also works well, are used to add weight so the pastry doesn’t puff up with hot air.)
• Meanwhile, chop shallots and slice fennel into thin strips; sauté in a knob of butter until slightly soft and translucent. Leave the wispy fronds of the fennel out and set aside.
• In a bowl, crack the egg and beat together with fennel fronds, chopped dill, pinch of salt and pepper. If using goat’s cheese, cut into chunks and mix into the egg mixture along with cream. Remove the pastry from the oven and place fennel, shallots and egg mixture into the pie case. Pop back in the oven and bake for about 15-20 minutes until golden and set.
  

  

  

  
• While the tart is baking, peel carrots and then use the peeler to make carrot ribbons. Squeeze lemon juice over and drizzle with olive oil. Mix in rocket. Serve slices of the tart with carrot ribbons and enjoy!
  

  

  

  

Pastry:

Ingredients: 225 plain flour, 110g butter, water.

Instructions: Cut butter into cubes and rub into flour with your fingertips until the mixture feels like breadcrumbs.
Using a fork, stir in just enough cold water (2-3tbsp) to bring the pastry together, gather into a ball, cling film and stick in the fridge for 15 mins. (Be conservative on the water, drier pastry will give a crispier crust).