Mussel, bacon & brie tartlets

Mussel, bacon & brie tartlets

These rich tartlets, made with Parmesan pastry, make a glamorous dinner party starter - perfect for Christmas or New Year

Difficulty and servings

Moderately easy

Serves 8

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 30 mins

Cook time

Cook 45 mins

Plus chilling time

Method

  1. Rub the butter, flour and Parmesan together in a bowl until the mixture has the consistency of fine breadcrumbs. Add the egg mix and quickly bring it all together into a dough. Knead lightly a few times with floured hands until smooth. Shape into a flat ball, cover in cling film and chill for at least 1 hr.
  2. Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Roll the pastry out to the thickness of a £1 coin and line eight 10cm x 3cm tartlet tins. Fill with greaseproof paper and baking beans, and bake for 7-10 mins until the pastry feels dry. Remove beans and paper, then bake for 2-3 mins, until lightly golden. Leave to cool.
  3. Reduce oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan and fry the onion for 3 mins until softened, but not coloured. Add the garlic and bacon, and cook for 2-3 mins. Allow to cool slightly. Meanwhile, whisk the eggs and cream with the chives, then fold in the onion, bacon and mussels. Season to taste. Set the cases on a baking sheet. Spoon the mix in and scatter the brie over the top, pushing into the mix here and there. Bake for 12-15 mins until the filling is just firm and golden. Serve warm with dressed leaves.
Try

Using fresh mussels

If using fresh mussels, you will need 2kg (in shell weight). Discard any with broken shells and those which don't close when sharply tapped. Cook on a high heat in a large pan with a splash of white wine for about 5 mins, shaking once or twice. Discard any that don't open, remove the meat from remainder. Strain the cooking liquid and heat with the onion mix until evaporated.

Per serving

692 kcalories, protein 27g, carbohydrate 26g, fat 54 g, saturated fat 28g, fibre 1g, salt 1.85 g

Recipe from Good Food magazine, January 2006.

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Latest comments and suggestions

  • Binder photo carolp

    05 February 2009

    carolp rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    I made the pastry in the food processor it was easy and tasted wonderful. Made a large tart rather than small tartlets, so needed to adjust cooking time to more like 30 mins to make sure it was set. Definitely will make again and again using different fillings.

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  • Binder photo Pete

    26 May 2010

    Pete rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    This is a fantastic dish. Easy to make, even if it requires a little time. I used fresh mussels which were lovely and I also made one large tart as opposed to several smaller tartlets. I adjusted the cooking time as with carolp's comment above. I will definitely make this one again!

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  • Binder photo Cramps

    29 September 2010

    Cramps rated this recipe

    4 stars

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  • Binder photo AK19

    28 January 2011

    AK19 rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Easy to make and looks and tastes v.impressive. For anyone with a fear of pastry making or lack of time you can use savoury pastry cases available from most supermarkets and add the parmesan into the filling mixture :) I also adjusted the cooking time to more like 25-30mins to ensure it was set through.

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  • Binder photo Emma

    18 October 2012

    Emma commented on this recipe

    Hello, I dont like Mussels, would this work if i substituted the mussels for cheddar? and what quantity would you suggest using? or perhaps another ingredient? Thanks

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  • Binder photo Claire's

    23 November 2012

    Claire's commented on this recipe

    Emma i used cherry tomatoes in mine instead of mussels and it tasted just as good, i cant tell you how much i used i just cut them in half and added them like the brie cut side facing up. hope this helps

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  • Binder photo Emma

    04 December 2012

    Emma commented on this recipe

    Thanks Clare, Thats actaully quite helpful thanks :) I am making them this weekend as practice for Xmas day

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  • Binder photo crumbortwo

    12 January 2013

    crumbortwo rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    I thought these tartlets were stunning. The ingredients work so well together. The pastry tasted awful after cooking the cases but when it all came together, the taste was amazing albeit very rich.

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Difficulty and servings

Moderately easy

Serves 8

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 30 mins

Cook time

Cook 45 mins

Plus chilling time

Glamorous starter

Ingredients

FOR THE PARMESAN PASTRY

  • 140g butter
  • 225g plain flour
  • 50g freshly grated Parmesan
  • 1 medium egg , beaten with 1 tbsp milk

FOR THE FILLING

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 red onion , finely chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves , finely chopped
  • 100g dry cure streaky bacon or pancetta, cubed
  • 4 medium eggs
  • 284ml pot whipping or double cream
  • 3 tbsp snipped chives
  • 500g frozen cooked shelled mussels , thawed and drained, or 2kg/4lb 8oz fresh mussels
  • 200g ripe brie , rind removed and cubed
  • 200g mixed salad leaves , to serve
  • 2-3 tbsp bought or homemade vinaigrette , to serve
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Per serving

692 kcalories, protein 27g, carbohydrate 26g, fat 54 g, saturated fat 28g, fibre 1g, salt 1.85 g

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