Mexican Style Savoury Tart

Mexican Style Savoury Tart
This recipe can be adapted to suit any ingredients you have in stock. I happened to have some frozen sweetcorn and black beans, so I based the topping around that. I also made the shortcrust pastry - I have got very quick at doing this, through practice - but it could also be bought.

Ingredients
Pastry
8 oz semi wholemeal flour
3 oz butter or margarine
pinch of salt
3-4 tablespoons cold water

Topping
Olive oil
Chilli sauce (optional)
Tomato puree or passata
Frozen, fresh or tinned sweetcorn
Black beans (home cooked, or tinned)
Feta cheese, crumbled (or any other preferred cheese)
Salt and black pepper
Fresh coriander (cilantro)

1.Sift the flour into a mixing bowl, and add the butter/margarine/palm oil. Cut into small pieces and, using your fingertips, rub the fat into to the flour, until it looks like fine breadcrumbs. Add the salt and 3 tablespoons(approximately) cold water. Press the dough together with your hands to form a ball of soft but not sticky dough. Add more water if the bough is too dry. Add more flour if it is too wet. Cover the bowl with a clean cloth.




2. (If possible, refrigerate the dough for at least 20 minutes, but if you haven't time, just keep on going, it'll work out fine.)
Grease a large tart or flan dish, or and put the ball of dough in it. Press and flatten the dough out with your hands, until it covers the base evenly, and comes up the sides to form a crust.




3. Spread the tomato paste or passata over the base. smooth using the back of a dessert spoon.



4.Sprinkle on the sweetcorn, the chopped tomatoes, the beans, the feta cheese, and the salt and pepper. Drizzle on some olive oil and hot chilli sauce (if desired).


5. Cook in the oven at Gas Mark 6 (200C, 400F) twenty to twenty five minute. The crust should be golden and come away from the edge of the tart dish.
Sprinkle with the chopped coriander (cilantro), serve hot or cold.



Note. Obviously other toppings such as red, yellow or green pepper, red beans, chopped green chilli, basil, rosemary etc could also be used.