Torte de Blettes

Name: Torte de Blettes
Prep time: 35 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 1 h 25 min
Yield: Serves 8
Cuisine: French
Ingredients: 25 g (1 oz) icing sugar; 250 g (8 oz) butter, or half butter and half margarine; 1 egg yolk; 425 g (14 oz) plain flour; a pinch of salt; 65 g (2½ oz) brown sugar; 65 g (2½ oz) pine kernels; 500 g (1 lb) dessert apples such as Cox’s; 500 g (1 lb) fresh swiss chard or spinach leaves; 75 g (3 oz) raisins; 2 tablespoons rum; 3–5 tablespoons iced water; salt; grated zest of 1 lemon; 2 eggs; 2 tablespoons redcurrant jelly; 75 g (3 oz) mild Cheddar, grated

Apple, swiss chard and pine kernel pie

Preparation info

Serves
8

Difficulty
Medium
Ready in
1 hr 25

Appears in

The Cooking of Provence

By Patricia Lousada

Published 1995

About

This is a traditional and much-loved dessert from Nice. The surprising combination of apples with swiss chard (or spinach) and cheese is most successful. If you reduce the sugar, you can serve this as a savoury course.

Ingredients

For the pastry

425 g (14 oz) plain flour
a pinch of salt<

Europe
France
Nice
Vegetarian
Pie
Mediterranean

Method

To make the pastry, sift the flour, salt and sugar together into a bowl. Cut the butter into small pieces and rub into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Using a fork, mix in the egg and just enough water to bind the dough together. Shape the dough into 2 discs, one larger than the other. Wrap in cling-film and refrigerate while you prepare the filling.

Place a ba