Black figs in rough puff pastry with fig leaf ice cream

Begin by making the rough puff pastry. Sift the flour onto a work surface and make a small well in the centre. Break the butter into small pieces and place in the centre of the well with the salt

Work the butter with your fingertips, drawing in the flour as you go. Gradually add the water, lemon juice and white wine vinegar and mix well

Roll the pastry into a ball, wrap in cling film and place in the fridge for 20 minutes

Remove the pastry from the fridge roll into a long rectangle on a lightly floured work surface. Mark the dough into thirds. Fold the bottom third up and the top third down and give it a quarter turn. Repeat again, then wrap the dough in cling film and return to the fridge for a further 30 minutes

Repeat the rolling and folding process 2 more times, then chill for a final 30 minutes. After this time the pastry is ready to be used

Place the cream and milk in a pan with the torn fig leaves. Bring to a gentle simmer, remove from the heat and leave to infuse for 1 hour

Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl until pale and smooth. Bring the milk and cream back up to simmering point and pour over the egg mixture, whisking all the time. Return the mixture to the saucepan. Place the pan over a low heat, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon, and cook the custard until it coats the back of the spoon

Take the pan off the heat, pass the custard through a fine sieve into a bowl and allow to cool completely. Churn the custard in an ice cream machine and freeze in freezer-proof container

When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 200°C/gas mark 6

Roll out the pastry (not too thinly) and then cut out circles using a 7cm pastry cutter

Place the pastry circles onto a baking sheet lined with greaseproof paper and bake in the oven for 20 minutes, or until golden. Remove from the oven, allow to cool then cut the pastry in half and scoop out any uncooked pastry. Set aside until ready to serve

Preheat a water bath to 62°C

Top and tail the figs and score a small cross on the top. Transfer to a tray and drizzle over a little honey. Scrape the seeds out from the vanilla pod and scatter over the figs

Place the honey-coated figs into a vacuum bag together with the port and stock syrup. Seal in a chamber sealer and cook in the water bath for 20 minutes

Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas mark 6

To serve, carefully reheat the pastry cases in the oven. Place a pastry case in the centre of each plate and spoon in some figs and honey fig juice. Finish with a generous scoop of fig ice cream and serve immediately