Oh, the wonderful world of ready-made puff pastry. Buy a  500g block, cut it into six pieces*, and freeze them. They take no time at all to defrost and are perfect as the basis for a simple mid-week dinner. Roll a piece out to your desired thickness and make the shape you require - a rectangle, square or round. Add your chosen toppings, bung in the oven for 20 minutes or so and serve with a crisp, green salad and maybe some sautéed potatoes or a hunk of good bread. There's already a few ideas in the recipe section:

• taleggio and onion tart
• gruyère and chorizo tart with a poached egg
• asparagus and parmesan tart
• pancetta and mushroom tart
  
• goat's cheese tart
  

* Unwrap the pastry block and divide in half lengthways. Cut each half into three equal-sized pieces. Wrap each piece in cling-film and freeze.

And here's a recipe for a mushroom tart I made last night:

You know what the filling for these tiny, pop-in-your-mouth delights - a simple mixture of mascarpone, condensed milk and vanilla - tasted like to me? The Mr Whippy ice creams of my childhood summers. But without all the thickeners, stabilisers, emulsifiers, and E numbers.

You can buy ready-made sweet shortcrust pastry (Jus-Roll for example), but I've never seen it in any of my local supermarkets.

You'll need a non-stick mini-muffin tray like this one.