Put the oil and butter into a frying pan, add the onions, cover and cook over a medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, for 25 – 35 minutes. The onions will collapse and become brown.
Remove the lid, stir in the sugar and cook for a further 2 minutes then remove from the heat, cover and set aside. These onions can be prepared well in advance of making the tart.
Wholemeal Pastry
Put the flour and butter into a large bowl.
Using a pastry blender or fork, mash the butter into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs.
Sprinkle the water over the flour and stir to bring together to form a ball of dough. If it does not do this easily, add a few more drops of water. Cover the dough and leave it to stand for 15 minutes.
Filling
Pre-heat the oven and rub a little butter or oil around the inside of a 23cm/9” quiche or pie dish.
Roll out the pastry in a 28cm/11” circle about the thickness of a £1 coin.
Gently lift the pastry into the prepared dish. Alternatively, press the pastry into a baking dish using your fingers.
Cut away any pastry hanging over the edge of your dish.
Break the eggs into a mixing bowl, add the cream, salt and pepper and beat together well.
Add the prepared onions to the bowl, stir to combine then tip the mixture into the prepared pastry base.
Bake for 45 – 50 minutes.
Equipment
23cm/9” spring-form cake tin or quiche dish
Temperature
180°C, Fan 160°C, 350°F, Gas 4
Cooking time
45-50 minutes
Overall a good recipe, but I felt it needed a few tweaks. I used 15 minutes of the cooking time to bake the pastry case ‘blind’ before adding the filling, which worked well (who wants soggy bottoms?). I also used 50% lard and 50% butter on my pastry, as I find all butter pastry too rich. A change I would make in future is not to add the tablespoon of brown sugar. It made the tart too sweet and if you have caramelised the onion properly then it will be sweet enough.
