Pea Tart And Pickled Onions

I did some baking yesterday.  I made a broad bean, pea and mint tart.  Minus the broad beans, as I didn't have any.  I made the pastry from scratch and was pleased with how it turned out.  It was shortcrust, but instead of using half fat to flour, the recipe said to use 250g flour and 150g butter and an beaten, I usually use water.  It did turn out richer and more tastier. 
You fry some shallots and garlic, very gently for a few minutes.  These are then put on the pre-cooked pastry base.  The peas are then added, these have been cooked for a couple of minutes as well.  This is topped with a mix of 3 big eggs, double cream and creme fraiche, dried mint and seasoning.  This evening, only two slices are left, or maybe just one sliver......

I also started some pickling yesterday.  I bought the onions locally in Egermont.  I boiled up the seasoned  and spiced vinegar  and left it to cool and start doing it's thing overnight.  I bottled the onions this evening.  Lo and behold, I ran out of vinegar on the third jar, so had to boil up some more.  This time I seasoned the vinegar myself, adding my own concoction.  I did not leave it for 24 hours to infuse, but just over two hours to cool.  As you can see, the vinegar is a different colour from the other two.

I want to pickle some eggs as well.  When we moved I got rid of most of my kilner jars.  There may be a few in storage somewhere in the barn.  I really could do with re-building my collection up.  I've missed the boat for pickling beetroot, but will look in the supermarket next time - request from Dad (D).  I used to make at least double the quantity and make some pretty fiery pickled onions - even I couldn't eat the hit ones, but HK and a colleague from work would devour them.  I don't really know anyone I could pickle for at the moment, so best not to do too many jars.

I'm going to make some parsnip soup for HK.  He has had a pain in his lower abdomen since last evening and it's getting him down.  He asked for some parsnip soup when the leek and tattie soup was nearly gone.  I got some lovely parnips today from the same shop in Egremont as I got the onions.  I also got some leeks as I could not resist the look of them!  The car smelled of leeks all the way home, so made me want to cook with them straight away.   I shall go and make the soup, it's just gone half nine at night here, so hopefully it will go some way to making HK feel better tomorrow.