SMOKED SALMON, DILL AND POTATO PIE

Steps:

• Peel the potatoes and slice thinly, cutting lengthways.
• The quickest way to do this is with a mandoline- a blade set in a wood or steel frame- or with the slicer attachment of your food processor.
• Rinse the potatoes and shake dry.
• Place the crème fraîche or cream in a heavy-bottomed saucepan, big enough for both the potatoes and the cream.
• Gently melt the cream.
• Stir in the spring onions and season with half a teaspoon of salt and a generous grating of pepper.
• Add the potatoes and stir them around thoroughly so all the slices are coated with cream.
• Cover the pan and cook, stirring occasionally and checking that the bottom slices aren't sticking and burning, for 15 minutes.
• Remove the lid.
• The potatoes will now be almost cooked and there will be far more sauce.
• Give everything a good stir and remove from the heat.
• Preheat the oven to 360F or 180 degrees C.
• Smear a 1.
• 5 to two-litre capacity gratin dish with the butter.
• Whisk the egg yolks with the milk.
• Chop the dill.
• Add one third of the potato mixture to the buttered dish and smooth it out.
• Scatter half the dill over the potatoes, season again with salt and pepper and then cover with half the smoked salmon.
• Dribble over half the egg mixture.
• Make another layer exactly the same and then finish the pie with potato, arranging the top so the surface is smooth.
• Place the dish in the oven and cook for 25 minutes until the top is patched with brown and the pie is cooked through, the potato and salmon held in a creamy, dill custard.