The custard - ideally a few hours before you want to cook the quiche/tart but ** not essential **
If you have a parmesan rind and/or bay leaf/freshly ground
nutmeg etc, place them in a saucepan with the cream and bring the heat to
medium. Season with salt and black pepper. After about five minutes and before it
boils, turn the heat off and leave to one side/in the fridge overnight, if you wish.
If making your own pastry
Blind baking
Turn your oven to 220C
Lightly flour your kitchen counter and place the pastry in the middle. Roll out the pastry to about 10 cm wider than the tin/dish you are using. Move the dish to next to your raw pastry. Either by nudging the pastry onto the pin, or by lightly folding the pastry into quarters, lift the pastry over the tin.
Prick the pastry all over with a fork and trim off any excess. Cut a length of greaseproof paper and grease it a little. Oiled side down, place it on the pastry and cover with the beans. Put in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes, or until the sides are golden brown.
Once ready, remove from the oven. Carefully pour the very, very hot baking beans into a heat proof bowl and leave to cool down. Dispose of the greaseproof paper. You can either go straight on to cook from here, or leave to cool and bake the quiche/tart another day.
Baking
Turn the oven on to/down to 180C. Place a tray in the oven to heat up. Strain the cream and discard the cheese rind. Take the eggs and/or egg yolks and whisk into the cream. Taste and season as necessary. Stir the cheese through.
If using spinach/onions, I tend to stir them into the custard. For peppers/feta, I pour in the custard and attempt to make a pretty dish by placing them carefully.
Place the tart on the waiting try in the hot oven and bake for between 30 and 40 minutes.
Check on it after about 25 minutes; if the top is brown but the middle is still very wobbly, you can turn the heat down and continue to bake. It’s ready when the middle of the tart feels firm to the touch.
Eating
If you’ve used a loose-bottomed tin, you can release the tart by propping it onto a tin and letting the side fall down. If you’re using a solid tin or ceramic dish, just leave on the wire cooling rack until ready.