Writers Abroad Magazine Issue 3 September 2015 | Page 5

WRITERS ABROAD MAGAZINE

Recipe
By Vanessa Couchman

Tarte aux Noix de Quercy (Quercy Walnut Tart)
Serves six greedy or eight normal people
Walnut trees grow in abundance in our part of Southwest France and start to drop their
fruits in late September. These versatile nuts were tradition ally pressed to make walnut
oil, but are also used in cakes, salads and fig and walnut jam.
Walnuts are at their best around Christmas. However, if you want to make walnut tart,
one of our local specialities, the fresh bitter ones (or wet walnuts) are best, since they
contrast well with the sweet filling.
Ingredients:
225g sweet shortcrust pastry
100g salted butter, melted
6 eggs
300g soft brown sugar
½ teaspoon salt
300g shelled walnut kernels, roughly chopped (but not too finely)
100ml honey
Zest of 1 lemon
A few drops vanilla essence
Method:
Preheat oven to 180C.
Bake pastry case blind for 10 minutes. Leave to cool.
Beat eggs and salt in a large mixing bowl until mixture lightens. Add sugar, honey,
lemon zest and vanilla essence and continue beating with a whisk till well
incorporated.
Add the walnut kernels and melted butter and mix carefully so as not to break up the
nuts. Pour the mixture into the prepared pastry case and place a few whole kernels
on top. Bake for 25 minutes until the tart filling is springy when pressed. Allow to cool
slightly, then remove from the tart tin. Cool completely before serving. Serve with
walnut wine. WA

5|September 2015