London - Arabstoday
Ingredients For the pastry 400g/14oz flour 250g/8oz butter 100g/4oz icing sugar plus a little extra for dusting 2 egg yolks a little water to bind For the filling 400g/14oz blackberries 6 large ripe figs 4 tbsp redcurrant jelly, melted 100g/4oz ground hazelnuts Serve with double cream Preparation method You will need a medium to large deep tart tin. Put the flour into a mixing bowl and rub in the butter with your fingertips, then mix in the icing sugar and the egg yolks. Bring the dough together and squeeze it into a round, then roll it into a short, fat log about four inches thick, before putting it in the fridge for half an hour to chill. I find this pastry works well in the food processor too; first blitz the flour and butter, then mix briefly with the sugar and egg yolk. Add a little extra water to bind if need be. Set the oven at 180C/350F/Gas 4. Rinse the fruit, chop the figs into quarters, and toss them with the melted jelly and ground hazelnuts in a bowl while you shape the pastry. Because of the high butter content it may be harder to shape the pastry, so an easy trick is to simply cut your log into 1cm thick discs and lay them overlapping around the base of the tin, nudging any gaps closed with your fingers. Tip your filling in now and then randomly place the remaining pastry discs over the top. Don’t worry about gaps because they allow the steam to escape, and the charm of this pie lies in the fact that it looks homemade. Bake in the oven for a good hour and when it is cooked dust over a little remaining icing sugar and serve with the cream.