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1
Heat oven to 400 degrees.
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2
Whisk flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt and cayenne in a bowl or blend in a food processor.
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3
Add 6 tablespoons of butter and cut in or pulse until size of peas.
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4
Beat 1 egg with 2 tablespoons ice water, scatter on flour mixture and mix with a fork or pulse until a dough can be gathered together.
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5
Add a little more water if needed.
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6
Form into a disk and roll on a lightly floured surface, then lay it into a 9-inch straight-sided tart pan.
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7
Trim edges, line with foil and weight with pastry weights or dry beans.
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8
Bake 10 minutes, until it starts to look dry.
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9
Remove foil and weights and bake 10 to 15 minutes more, until lightly browned.
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10
Remove from oven.
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11
Reduce heat to 350 degrees.
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12
Melt remaining butter in a skillet over medium heat, add shallot and cook 1 minute.
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13
Add asparagus and cook about 2 minutes, until they start to soften.
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14
Remove from heat.
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15
Fold in crab meat, lemon juice and chervil.
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16
Season with salt.
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17
Spread in pastry.
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18
Whisk half-and-half and cheese until smooth.
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19
Beat in remaining eggs until well blended.
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20
Pour over crab and asparagus, place in oven and bake about 40 minutes, until set and lightly browned.
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21
Let cool 15 minutes, remove sides of pan and serve at once or cooled to room temperature.
