Galette de pommes de terre

When we're in France I always get seduced by all the wonderful patisserie and breads. I'm like a child in sweet shop and always come out of the boulangerie clutching a little paper wrapped parcel. On this occasion I was in a boulangerie in a town called Argenton-sur-Creuse in central France. Delicious bread was being baked in the wood fired bread oven at the back of the shop, so as well as buying my bread for the day I was tempted by a square of this golden, glossy-glazed, flaky pastry potato tart.

Sadly the flavour was very disappointing and bland. The only way I can describe it was very smooth unseasoned potato puree between two sheets of pastry. I like the idea though so here's my version of Galette de pommes de terre (potato tart) with added creme fraiche, garlic and chives. It's delicious served warm with a tomato salad dressed with a zingy Dijon mustard dressing. Or, serve it cold for picnics - it holds together quite well so you can easily eat it with your fingers.

Serves 6
350g medium-size new potatoes, thinly sliced (or you can use leftover cooked potatoes)
150ml creme fraiche
1 juicy fat garlic clove, crushed
3 tbsp snipped chives (I use scissors for this)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 (320g) sheets ready-rolled puff pastry
1 egg, beaten

1 Preheat the oven to 200C, Fan 180C, gas 6. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment. Cook the potato slices in a pan of boiling water for 5-7 mins until just tender. Drain and rinse under cold water then drain again.

2 Place the creme fraiche in a small bowl, stir in the garlic and chives and season with salt and freshly ground pepper.

3 Unroll one of the sheets of pastry and place on the baking parchment lined baking sheet. If the potatoes are quite wet dab them with kitchen paper then arrange them, overlapping slightly, over the pastry leaving a 1cm border all around the edge. Spoon the creme fraiche mixture over the potatoes to thinly cover.

4 Brush the 1cm border with beaten egg and place the other sheet of pastry over the top. Press the edges together to seal then flute the edges using your fingers or press with the back of a fork. Brush the pastry all over with beaten egg and, using a sharp knife, score criss cross lines across the top. Bake in the oven for 15-20 mins until the pastry is golden brown and risen slightly. Cut into squares to serve.