Asparagus and Camembert quiche

To make the pastry case, sift the cake flour and pinch salt together. Rub in the chilled butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the thyme leaves and enough cold water to form a pliable pastry that is neither too dry nor sticky, then form into a disc. If the pastry is too sticky, simply add a little more flour. Wrap in cling film and refrigerate, 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Dust a surface with a little flour and roll out the pastry. It should fit and cover the base and sides of a 22cm-diameter quiche tin. Grease the tin, line it with the pastry and trim the edges. Prick the base gently with a fork and line with baking paper. Fill with baking beans or pulses and blind-bake in the preheated oven, 15 – 20 minutes. Remove from oven when the pastry is cooked through and lightly golden, take out the baking beans and discard the baking paper used for the blind baking. Reduce the oven temperature to 180°C.

While the pastry case blind-bakes, make the filling by bringing a potof salted water to a boil, add the asparagus spears and simmer, about 2 minutes. Remove the asparagus from the water and refresh in cold water.

Fill the pastry case with the asparagus and the Camembert slices. Whisk the eggs and fresh cream together. Season the egg mixture to taste and gently pour over the filling. Bake in the 180°C oven until the quiche is set and golden brown, 40 – 45 minutes. Enjoy served hot or cold.