Sweet ’n’ Spicy Veal, Pork and Macadamia Nut Tart

How to make Sweet ’n’ Spicy Veal, Pork and Macadamia Nut Tart Recipe - This tart is delicious served hot or warm, garnished with fresh mint leaves or rocket. recipe from Dean Brettschneider

MAKES A 27CM TART, SERVING 6–8 PEOPLE

PASTRY
½ quantity of Fennel Pastry

FILLING
80g macadamia nuts
6 tbsp olive oil
350g veal mince
350g pork mince
3 tbsp tomato purée
2 tsp sugar
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tbsp dried mint
2 tsp ground allspice
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp sweet paprika
½ tsp chilli flakes
2 onions, thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
50g Parmesan, grated
7 free-range eggs
1 small handful fresh mint leaves or rocket, to garnish

Method:
Make a half-quantity of Fennel Pastry ahead and rest it as required. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface to 3mm thick, then grease and line a 27cm round, loose-bottomed tart tin, trimming the edges. Refrigerate for 1 hour. Line the pastry with aluminium foil and baking blind material and then bake blind in a preheated 180°C oven for 10 minutes. Remove foil and weights and bake until dry and crisp (10 minutes). Transfer to a rack to cool completely, about 30 minutes.

Spread macadamia nuts on a baking paper-lined oven tray and roast for 6–8 minutes until golden. Allow to cool slightly, then roughly chop.

To make the filling, heat half the olive oil in a large heavy saucepan over a medium-high heat. Add the veal mince. Break it up with a fork and cook it over a high heat for a few minutes to get some colour. Add the pork mince, mix well with a fork and keep on cooking over a medium heat for 15 minutes or until golden. Stir in the tomato purée and sugar and cook for a further 3 minutes. Add salt, pepper, mint and all the spices. Cook for a further 10 minutes over low heat.

In a separate pan fry the onions with the remaining olive oil until golden-brown, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic to the onions after 5 minutes of cooking. Be careful not to burn. Drain most of the oil and add the onion and garlic mixture and Parmesan to the cooked meat. Add the macadamia nuts and adjust seasoning as required.

To assemble the pie, spoon half of the cooled meat mixture into the pastry case. Make some shallow holes in the mixture and break in 3 of the eggs, one by one, pouring them into the holes. Using a wooden spoon, stir the eggs gently in the meat – just enough to disperse them a little, while keeping areas with more egg and maintaining some distinction between white and yolk. Spoon the rest of the meat on top, create some gaps and holes in it and break in the rest of the eggs, dispersing them as before.

Bake in a preheated 190°C oven for about 15 minutes or until the eggs are set. If the top begins to darken, cover it with aluminium foil for the remaining cooking period. Add garnish just before serving.

Sweet ’n’ Spicy Veal, Pork and Macadamia Nut Tart