A lovely fig tart for Autumn....

You will remember that I purchased half a dozen lovely organic red figs at the Addison Road market on the weekend, so I decided to use those as the centerpiece for a quick and easy tart. I had to bake something for a work morning tea and I wanted something I could throw together easily - This tart fits the bill perfectly.

I am also in the process of trying to use up various bits and pieces in the freezer and pantry - something I do each season. It is always good to have a good pantry clear out at  least a few times a year and it is a good excuse to create ways to use up bits and pieces that you might have leftover from other culinary ventures.

I discovered I had some almond meal (just a handful), some hazelnuts and some walnuts so I ground them all together and used those on the base of the tart. Other random leftover ingredients were a couple of sheets of puff pastry in the freezer and some maple syrup in the cupboard. These also helped to create this dish. This tart is of the rustic, freeform variety - I didn't fuss around with it or attempt to make it particulary perfect or pretty. You can if you want to. You could also do individual ones. This tart can be served warm or cold and would be nice with a little double cream as a dessert. This is a great way to enjoy the beautiful new season's figs that have started to appear in the greengrocer, welcoming in Autumn.

Walnut, almond & hazelnut tart with organic red figs.

You will need: 1 sheet pre packaged puff pastry, 6 figs sliced, 1 cup maple syrup, 3 tablespoons butter, 1/2 cup each of ground hazelnuts and walnuts, 2 tablespoons almond meal, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 2 Tablespoons caster sugar, 1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg, 1 egg lightly beaten.

Method: Preheat the oven to about 220C.

Melt the butter and combine well with the nuts, vanilla, sugar and nutmeg.

Lay the pastry sheet on a baking tray (I use baking paper on the tray - no washing up!) and spread the nut mixture over the pastry, leaving about 2cm free around the edges of the pastry.

Lay the sliced figs over the nut mixture. Fold up the edges of the pastry and pinch around the edges so that it sticks together and stays put. Bake the tart until golden.

When you remove it from the oven, brush with the maple syrup when it is still warm.

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