Food for thought

His masterpiece was Floyd on France, which came out in 1987. For me, it is the greatest food programme ever made. I watched it avidly with my Mum when it came out, fascinated and absorbed with Floyd’s memorable antics. Some of you might remember his encounter with the terrifying Madame Mimi who rubbished his attempt at a Piperade and made her own, which he gallantly

Walnut Tart

Ingredients

Pastry

250g plain flour

100g butter

1 egg yolk

1 tbsp caster sugar

Walnut Tart with Armagnac Icing

125g ground walnuts

300ml double cream

Dash vanilla essence

100g sugar

1 egg white, whipped until stiff Pinch salt

For the icing

50 ml Armagnac

100g icing sugar, sieved accepted was far superior.

Quite a few recipes from the Floyd on France cook book made it onto our menu when Paysanne first opened. One of my favourites was a smoked duck salad which we ‘borrowed’ from a cooking sketch he made in the Dordogne – though he used fried gizzards instead, which we felt might be a touch of authenticity too far.

Best of all was his walnut tart, which became one of Mum’s staples for years. My folks were over recently and immediately the request went out for her to make it again. One mouthful, and I was taken straight back to those first days of Paysanne, all those years ago. No one else has ever quite managed to make it the same way, but if you want a give it a try, here’s the recipe. Don’t forget to pour a glass of wine and have a little slurp while you’re making it. It is a Keith Floyd recipe after all…

Pastry

Rub together for a breadcrumb consistency. Add 1 egg yolk and mix together with a palette knife, add a tablespoon of sugar and a tiny bit of very cold water to form a sticky dough. Roll it out on a floured surface and roll it onto a buttered tart tin using a rolling pin. Prick and bake blind at 160˚C (Fan) for 10 minutes. Leave to cool.

Walnut Tart with Armagnac Icing

Combine all together and bake at 160˚C (Fan) until set, which should take 25 minutes to half an hour. When tart is completely cooled, mix the Armagnac and icing sugar together and spread it over the tart. Decorate with walnut halves. n

Cai Ross is co-owner and Maitre d’ of the award-winning Paysanne Bistro in Deganwy, which has been serving French country-style food to the fine people of North Wales since 1988. He also writes for Calibre Magazine, BBC Good Food, HeyUGuys.com and The North Wales Weekly News