Salmon and Pak Choi Quiche – the Great British Bake-off

I bought the Great British Bake Off cookbook on the strength of this recipe for salmon and pak choi quiche. The lovely Jason White made it and won the bake-off that week. (Jason  blogs as Chef Jae @ http://preheattheoven.wordpress.com/ ). However it has taken me a while to get around to using the book (I did try the honeycomb with mixed results). I realised after I bought the book and started to browse that the recipes developed by the contestants would, of course be more challenging as they were aiming to show off their skill. This means it is a book for when you can take your time to bake and not when you’re trying to do something in a hurry or for the first time when entertaining. The instructions were very easy to follow, be aware there’s two periods of chilling pastry, plus blind baking the case so it’s a time consuming recipe to make up but much of the time you’re just waiting. I got on with making a cucumber salad and stir frying veg to have alongside.

I should have covered the quiche halfway through baking as it did get quite browned (as can be seen in the photo) but it looked better in reality than the photo indicates. The quiche looked appetising and  tasted great, more delicate than expected despite putting soy sauce on the salmon. (I think I might put the soy on the salmon as part of the seasoning before cooking next time). The pastry was perfect, definitely no soggy bottoms.

I used a 23cm loose bottomed flan dish as recommended but I had enough pastry to also line a 10cm loose bottomed tartlet dish and since I had three pak choi I made up a little quiche as well. This was very pretty, it is going in Aidan’s packed lunch tomorrow, I’ll have to ask him how it worked cold. These would make lovely starters for a dinner party.

Ingredients

For the pastry

• 250g plain flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
• 150g softened butter
• 2 free range eggs

For the Filling

•  400g salmon fillets
• sea salt and pepper
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 3 free range eggs
• 300ml double cream
• 2 pak choi

Instructions

1. To make the pastry, mix the flour, salt and sesame seeds in a medium bowl and make a well in the centre. Beat together the butter and 1 of the beaten eggs in a small bowl and gradually mix into the flour mixture to make a soft dough. Lightly knead the dough on a floured board until smooth then wrap in cling film and chill for at least 20 minutes.
2. To make the filling, season the salmon with salt and freshly ground black pepper and bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until just cooked through. Allow the fish to cool a little then flake the flesh into small pieces.
3. Trim the pak choi and cut in half. If necessary slice a little off the curved side to allow the pak choi halves to sit steady.
4. Roll the pastry out on a lightly floured board and line a greased 23cm/9in loose-bottomed tart tin. Chill for 15 minutes then prick the base with a fork, line with aluminium foil and baking beans and bake for 15 minutes at 190 C.
5. Brush the base of the tart case with the remaining beaten egg from the pastry ingredients and bake for five more minutes. Remove the tin from the oven and turn the temperature down to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
6. Arrange the salmon over the base of the pastry case and drizzle over the soy sauce.
7. Mix the eggs with the cream in a jug, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper then pour three quarters of the mixture over the salmon. Arrange the pak choi on top, cut side up, and pour over the remaining egg mixture. Bake in the oven for about 40-45 minutes or until the filling is golden brown and just set.

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