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1
Put the flour into a bowl and add the butter.
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2
Rub it into the flour until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs (you can also do this in a food processor).
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3
Grate the cheese and stir it in along with the thyme, a pinch of black pepper, and the beaten egg.
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4
Bring together to form a soft ball, adding a little milk if necessary.
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5
Lightly flour a work surface.
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6
Roll the pastry out and use it to line a 12 x 9-inch (30 x 23cm) nonstick baking sheet (if your baking sheet isnt nonstick, brush it with a little butter).
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7
Press the pastry carefully into the corners and trim the edges, then chill for a good thirty minutes.
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8
Dont be tempted to skip the chilling period, otherwise your pastry will shrink in the oven.
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9
Preheat the oven to 400F (200C).
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10
To make the filling, blanch the chard in a little boiling water until soft and tender.
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11
Drain and squeeze as much of the water out with your hands as you can, then coarsely chop the chard.
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12
Finely slice the green onions and add to the chard with a seasoning of salt and pepper.
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13
Lay a piece of aluminum foil or wax paper in the pastry shell and weigh it down with dried beans (I sometimes find a piece of aluminum foil is heavy enough to do the job without the beans, though not so greaseproof ).
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14
Bake for fifteen minutes or so, until the pastry is firm, then remove the paper and return the pastry to the oven for five minutes, until dry to the touch.
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15
Put the chard into the pastry shell.
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16
Beat the eggs and cream until well mixed and season lightly.
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17
Scatter the grated cheeses over the chard and pour over the egg and cream mixture.
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18
Bake for twenty to twenty-five minutes, until the pastry is crisp and the filling has set.
