An Unexpected Cookbook: The Unofficial Book of Hobbit Cookery by Chris-Rachael Oseland

free, cook the meat substitute in 2 tbsp of your favorite fat. When mixing the cooked crumbles with the breadcrumbs, onion, and seasoning, add an extra tablespoon of fat for both binder and texture. Leave out the egg entirely. If you want to add a little vegan cheese as a topping, wait until the last five minutes of cooking. Non dairy cheese substitutes don’t melt - they burn.
     
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Rustic Apple Tart
    A rustic apple tart is a perfect pantry staple to have on hand if one happens to be friends with wizards. It’s fancy enough to feel celebratory yet easy enough you can honestly claim it was no trouble. Better yet, the vegetarian ingredients can be safely left out at room temperature for several days with nothing more than a clean cheesecloth draped on top to keep pests and dust at bay.
     
    1 batch sweet pastry crust ( from the Apple Hand Pies on pg 34)
    4 tbsp quince jelly (fig or black cherry make acceptable substitutes)
    1/2 c / 100 g sugar
    1 tsp ginger powder
    1 tsp cinnamon
    ½ tsp nutmeg
    pinch cloves
    pinch salt
    finely-grated zest of 1 lemon
    6 tart green apples, peeled, cored and sliced into thin wedges
    1 tbsp molasses (or treacle)
    1 tbsp hot water
    2 tbsp butter
     
    Country cooks were well skilled at using the same ingredients and techniques in interesting ways. Rather than conjuring a whole new type of crust, this uses the same sweet pastry dough as the Apple Hand Pies (pg 34) in the chapter on Elevenses . Instead of enclosing a bunch of little pies so they’ll withstand a small adventure, you’re going to serve this rustic beauty open faced as the last bite of supper.
     
    Roll out the crust so it’s a large, 9-10 inch / 22-25 cm circle. Trim away the edges. Rather than throw away the extra dough, try turning it into a batch of Plum Heavies. (pg 81) for tomorrow's Afternoon Tea. .
     
    Butter a baking sheet and arrange the neatly trimmed crust in the middle. (If you’re afraid of the tart losing shape during baking, you can arrange the crust in the middle of a springform pan. You’ll still have a rustic, open-faced look when you’re done without the distinctive pie-pan shape.)
     
    Spread your quince jelly in the middle. If you can’t get ahold of quince jelly, you can always substitute fig or black cherry jellies. The flavors won’t be identical, but they’ll still be true to the limitations Tolkien placed on the Shire while also tasting wonderful. The outer 3 inches / 7.5 cm will be folded up and around the tart, so leave that area as clean as possible.
     
    Mix the sugar, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, salt, and lemon zest. Once the sugar and spices are well blended, add the green apple slices and toss them until every apple slice is well coated. Thin your molasses (or treacle) out with the hot water and drizzle that on top of the apple slices, tossing once more to ensure all the apples are as evenly coated as possible.
     
    Neatly arrange your well coated apple slices over the quince jelly. Once you have an even coating of apples, cut the butter into cubes and dot it over the surface of the fruit.
     
    Carefully fold the crust upwards and inwards to keep the interior from escaping. You can either finish the crust by painting it with an egg wash to make it shiny or keep it rustic and add a little flavor by dusting it with ¼ c / 50 g sugar mixed with 1 tsp cinnamon for a little extra shine, sweetness, and crunch.
     
    Bake your tart at 350F / 180C for 25-30 minutes, or until the exterior is a deep golden brown and the interior apples just start to brown at the edges.
     
    You’ll want to dig in as soon as it comes out of the oven, but resist your natural urges and let the tart settle and cool for half an hour before serving. It’s fantastic on its own, but even better with a dab of clotted cream.
     
    Whatever is left of your tart after supper will stay perfectly good for a couple of days at room temperature. It makes a great cold breakfast the next morning or a nice treat to have on