Here’s a savoury tart to use up all your dairy products in the time known before lent as “shrovetide” (pre-lenten period)…but in today’s tart I won’t give you a specific recipe-it’s up to you.

I will tell you how to go about it so you can create your own savoury tart however you wish to make it and use whatever ingredients you have in the fridge that have to be used before Lent starts shortly.

For the pastry its quite simple..

In my blood orange tart recipe I have given you the perfect base for a tart. So look that up!

The recipe I wrote is enough to make two tart bases. So make enough for four bases and place the rest in the freezer. This will make making tarts a lot easier and you will have a tart in only a few minutes in the oven ready to go.

Now..for the filling..it doesn’t need much thought really..

Think of your tart baking tray. Most create about 8 servings so you can feed 8 people from one tart.

If your tray is bigger you could get as many as 12 servings from one tart..

You will need approximately half an egg per person and 20g of milk or cream per person.

So for a medium sized tart that serves 8 people we need 4 eggs and 160g of milk or cream.

Put the eggs and milk in a bowl and beat them together. Put quite a bit of pepper but not too much salt…

From this stage the rest of the filling is up to you..

You could put cheese, in pieces or grated of different types.

You could put in cured meat, bacon, ham, turkey whatever you like just make sure it is cooked meat and cut into small pieces.

We can put in whatever is left over that must be eaten before lent begins- I have made a tart with string beans, with chick peas which I have drained of their juice.

We can add vegetables that we have in the fridge just make sure they are cooked in some way (steamed or boiled)..potatoes, carrots, broccoli, courgettes(zucchini), whatever you find you can put in your tart.

Put in plenty of herbs and spices like parsley, dill, spearmint just cut them up finely and add them in it will be perfect!

I have made tarts with pasta and Bolognese sauce which I had left over, also with Hilopites (greek village pasta squares)..anyway don’t thrown anything away recycle all your pre cooked or stored food..

That’s all..

Good luck and enjoy the carnival!