Quiche Lorraine

Quiche is a great standby in any household. Lovely hot or great in a lunch box the following day. And if you don’t like bacon, you can easily substitute mushrooms or anything that takes your fancy.

Serves four hungry people

225g plain flour 100g butter cold and cubed (and an additional knob for greasing the pie tin) 30ml ice cold water 6 free range eggs (plus one to mix with a splash of milk for an egg wash) 500ml double cream 10 rashers of streaky bacon, cut into small pieces 100g Isle of Mull Cheddar, grated salt and pepper to season grating of fresh nutmeg a couple of handfuls of pea shoots, to decorate

1 Blend the flour, a pinch of salt and butter in a food processor and add enough cold water to allow it to form into a ball. Clingfilm and chill in the fridge for at least an hour.

2 Butter a loose bottom fluted 10-12 inch pie tin and place the rolled pastry on top. Make sure the pastry is large enough to slightly fold over the edges of the tin. Brush the pastry

with the egg wash. Place a sheet of baking paper on top of the pastry and weigh down with baking beans. Bake at 180C/gas Mark 4 for 15 minutes to seal the pastry.

3 Remove from the oven, removing the paper and beans and cool for a few minutes. Any loose edges can be broken off at this stage to make the pastry look neat.

4 Beat the 6 eggs, double cream, bacon, cheddar, nutmeg, salt and pepper together and fill the lined pie dish. Bake at 170C/gas Mark 3 for 30-40 minutes until the quiche is set. Serve hot or cold as you please, with a bunch of pea shoots on the side.