Posts tagged tart

Gooseberry Vanilla Tart

November 14, 2020 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

y fiancé has been asking me to make this childhood favourite since we met (nearly 4 years ago). I hear his granny made it for him when he was small and it was ‘the best thing ever’. Without a recipe to follow, I experimented and with pride and confidence and presented it to him at our Friday date night in lockdown with high expectations for my creation. It didn’t quite get the reaction I’d imagined while I slaved away baking blind my pastry…To cut a long disappointing story short, it turns out is was nothing like his Grannies tart. On describing the key differences I quickly pinpointed that his identification of a tart and a cheesecake are apparently the same.

So, while this gooseberry tart tastes lovely, expect a gooseberry-type-cheesecake recipe to follow soon.

NOTE: This custard sauce can essentially be poured over any fruit of choice if you aren’t a gooseberry fan. As long as its not a very wet / soft fruit that will leak moisture into the sauce e.g. raspberries. Replace with something like blueberries, cherries, blackberries or even sliced ripe pears.

125g butter
250g plain flour
300g gooseberries
200ml double cream
1 tsp vanilla essence OR seeds from 1 vanilla pod
2 large eggs
85g caster sugar

Begin with the pastry. Rub the butter into the flour to form a breadcrumb like mixture or do in a food processor.
Add 1 tbsp cold water and mix with a knife to form a dough (you will probably need more water but add it little by little to prevent it becoming too wet).
Knead lightly on a lightly floured surface until smooth. Wrap in cling film and place in the fridge for 20 minutes.
Grease and line a fluted tart tin with a removable base (25cm diameter and 2.5cm deep tin I used)
Roll out the pastry on a floured surface to about 3mm thick into a large round. Lift the pastry onto the rolling pin and drape into the tin.
Press the pastry into the well greased tin and up the sides and prick all over with a fork.
Preheat the oven to 190°C, line with parchment, fill with baking beans and blind bake for about 15-20 minutes and a further 5 minutes without the beans until the case is precooked and golden.
Mix the eggs in a jug and use to brush over the fork pricks. Pop back in the oven for a few minutes to seal those wholes then remove from the oven.
Mix the cream, sugar and vanilla into the eggs in the jug and whisk well.
Scatter the gooseberries onto the pastry base evenly.
Pour the vanilla custard over the top and bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes until golden and the custard has set.
Remove from the oven, leave to cool slightly before serving dusted with icing sugar and a large scoop of ice cream or some warm custard.

Nectarine, Almond and Rosemary Tart

August 17, 2015 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

adore the savoury taste of rosemary in desserts which should not be knocked before tried. Whether with apricots (see here) or honeyed pine nuts (see here) it adds a lovely warming flavour if added with a disciplined hand…don’t get to carried away or you’ll be expecting roasted lamb to appear in your ice cream! With an abundance of fresh juicy ripe nectarines in season at the moment, I combined them with the sugary flavours of this frangipane tart and the subtle spike of rosemary. Although sweet, this dessert can handle the sharp honeyed flavours of a lovely Sauterens with acts as the perfect accompaniment to this dish. Washed down with a dainty glass (at my encouragement) was a perfect end to a summer BBQ with friends. Serve with creamy vanilla flecked ice cream, luxurious clotted cream or tart creme fraiche.

Serves 12

Pastry

250g plain flour
125g cold cubed butter
Zest 1 lemon

Filling

2 ripe nectarines, halved and sliced into wedges
1 1/2/ tbsp finely chopped fresh rosemary
200g ground almonds
200g cubed butter
100g caster sugar
100g soft light brown sugar
3 eggs
Vanilla extract
1 tbsp demerara sugar

Start with the pastry. Combine the flour, butter and zest in a food processor until the mixture starts to come together. Slowly add up to 2 tbsp cold water until the pastry forms a soft ball of dough.
Form the dough into a disc, wrap in cling film and place in the fridge for 15 minutes or so.
Preheat the oven to 180. Grease and line a large tart tin with a loose bottom. Remove the pastry from the fridge and roll out to the thickness of about £1 coin and line the tart tin. Prick the base with a fork all over.
Line with parchment and baking beans and bake blind for about 20 minutes. Once beginning to just colour straw brown, remove the beans and bake for a further 5 minutes or so until the base is lightly borne and cooked. Remove from the oven and leave to cool.
Make the filling. Cream the butter and sugar together in a food processor. Once combined, add the eggs one by one and a splash of vanilla. Add the 1tbsp of chopped rosemary
Finally, fold in the ground almonds until thoroughly combined.
Fill the baked tart shell with the frangipane mixture and spread out evenly.
Top with the wedges of nectarine, allowing about 1 slice per portion or there abouts.
Scatter with the crunchy demerara sugar and bake in the oven for about 40-45 minutes until golden brown and cooked.
Leave to cool slightly in the tin before removing and serving on a large plate. Scatter with the remaining 1/2 tsp rosemary and a little dusting of icing sugar. Serve with creme fraiche and a delicious glass of Sautnernes.

Chocolate Mint Tart with Sugared Pistachios

June 14, 2015 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

y recent adventure to the colourful delights of Morocco has naturally fuelled my blogging obsession once again. I have, for this week at least, exhausted the classic tagine and now have only sweet treats on the mind. Green & Blacks recent emphasis on colour in our taste and perception can not only be reflected in their packaging but I couldn’t help but see this mirrored in Morocco which is a country that is summed up by colour and flavour. A feast for the eyes. With teasing fresh mint tea available in Morocco at any opportunity (whether requested or not) I stole this flavour inspiration using Green & Blacks new ‘Mint Crisp’ bar.

If you’re a chocolate connoisseur you’ll already have noticed Green & Blacks new bars – ‘Thins’ – so this won’t come as surprising news. Long ago I spotted the ‘Mint Crisp’ flavour and stocked up. I love this new format or bite-sized slices of flavoursome chocolate. Ironically here I’ve used the new ‘Thins’ bar in this recipe….which won’t make you that. But hey, the mint brings back the buzz of the Medina’s and Riads.

This tart is rich and dense. If you’re not a mint fan then feel free to make this soley dark or try using G&B’s salted caramel thins in stead. The crunchy topping adds a lovely texture but again can be substituted with pecans, walnuts, or almonds (which would go particularly well with the salted caramel bar). Devour with some clean simple ice cream or fruit.

Pastry

1 x quantity of shortcrust pastry (see here for recipe) made with additional small handful of desiccated coconut.

Filling

150g Green & Blacks ‘Mint Crisp Chocolate’
100g Green & Blacks dark 70-80% chocolate
100ml single cream
250ml whole milk
3 beaten eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

Topping

50g pistachios
1 tbsp caster sugar
4 tbsp desiccated coconut
1 large lime, zest only

Start by making the pastry case according to the link above and using a deep 20cm wide pastry case. Add a handful of coconut to the flour if you like.
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Set aside your blind baked pastry case while you make the filling.
Mix the cream and milk together in a saucepan and heat until just about to come to the boil.
Remove from the heat and break in the chocolate in small pieces. After a few minutes mix together until the chocolate is smooth and fully melted into the cream. Use a whisk to throughly combine the cream and melted chocolate.
Leave to cool until lukewarm.
When lukewarm, beat in the eggs and vanilla.
Place the tart case on a baking tray and fill ¾ full with the chocolate filling.
Place the tray on the oven shelf and once its stable, fill the tart to full with the remaining mixture (or as much as will fit int your tin! I had a little left over)
Bake for about 20 minutes until just set and shiny.
Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely.
Meanwhile make the topping. Crush the nuts in a pestle and mortar until finely crushed but with a few chunks here and there.
Toast the coconut in a dry hot frying pan until just beginning to colour golden and then add to the nuts. Stir in the lime zest and the sugar and combine.
Once the tart has cooled, use this mixture to scatter over the top of the tart.

Gingerbread Ice Cream, Lemon Apple Tart

December 26, 2014 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

Gingerbread! Not only is it a festive crowd and stomach pleaser but its also an adored treat in the Wardlaw household! So what could be better than gingerbread and ice cream combined for a festive spicy Christmas lunch dessert this year. I think I’ve gotten a little carried away with the gingerbread theme recenty (see here for gingerbread latte macaroons and here for gingerbread scotch pancakes). And those that know me know that ice cream is my achilles heel (see here for some inventive creations).

We’re probably in the minority in terms of food ethos on Christmas day. While many people might not think twice about their pudding choice I like to choose something that leads on from the indulgent main event that leaves people feeling happy and not sick and queezy. Don’t get me wrong, we’re a family with healthy appetite but a modest one. So, I always create something fresh and clean to cleanse the greasy remains of the turkey lunch so this zesty fresh tart is perfect.

This is a really old and long used tart recipe which could not be more simple to knock out! If you’re not making your own pastry it can be ready to go in under an hour!

Serves 6

Gingerbread Ice Cream

Although you could just flavour the ice cream base with gingerbread spices, I thought some added crumbled gingerbread would be a nice addition. Gingerbread is characteristcally mosit so I dried and crisped mine up beforehand to provide some texture to the final snowball scoop.

1 can condensed milk
300ml single cream
1tsp ground ginger
1tsp ground cinnamon
200g gingercake (I used Jamacian ginger loaf)

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Crumble the ginger cake onto a baking tray and bake for about 15 minutes or so, keeping an eye on it, until it begins to crisp a bit or loose some of its moisture. Remove from the oven and leave to cool. Don’t worry – once its cooled it will crisp up more.
Mix the condensed milk and cream together thoroughly in a jug then add the spices and mix.
Churn in an ice cream maker until thick but not too set. Alternatively you can pour it into a tupperware box and leave to set in the freezer until thicker and no longer sloppy.
Once the ice cream is the right consistency and the cake crumbs have cooled, stir them into the ice cream so it is distributed evenly and then freeze until hard.

Lemon and Apple Tart

Shortcrust Pastry (enough for 2 tart cases)

125g unsalted butter
250g plain flour
Zest of 1 lemon

Filling

1 large cooking apple
2 large eggs, whisked
1 lemon, zest and juice
100g caster sugar
50g melted butter

Start with the pastry. I like to use plain shortcrust as the ice cream and filling are sweet enough. Mix together the butter and flour in a food processer until it forms a breadcrumb like texture and then grate in the lemon zest and mix.
Keep adding a few tbsps of cold water bit by bit and mix until you form a soft smooth dough.
Form gently into a dough and shape into a disc. Wrap in cling film and leave to rest in the fridge for about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180°C and line and grease a 20cm loose bottomed tart tin.
Once rested, roll the pastry thinly on a floured surface and line the tart tin pushing the pastry into the edges neatly. Use a fork to prick 4-5 wholes across the base to stop it puffing up while cooking. Line with a sheet of baking parchment and fill with baking beans. Bake the tart case blind for about 15-20 minutes until it has a light straw colour and is mostly cooked.
Remove the beans and parchment and return the case to the oven to cook the base for about more 5 minutes. Finally brush with a little beaten egg to cover the wholes and seal the pastry.
Leave the case to cool while you make the filling.
Whisk the eggs, sugar and lemon zest and juice in a bowl.
Melt the butter and add to the mixture, whisking as you go.
Grate the apple into the eggs too.
Fill the tart case with the mixture and bake in the oven for about 35-40 minutes until just set and golden on top.

Serve the tart dusted with icing sugar and with a snowball of gingerbread ice cream!

Almond Blackcurrant Tarts with Salted Lime

September 29, 2014 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

I spent a gorgeously sunny few days at home in Wiltshire this weekend and had to make a batch of my favourite sweet treat. The recipe is from one of my previous blog posts but adapted slightly with some lime salt which I thought was a quirky experiment. I love salt with sweetness and the sharp lime and blackcurrant in this recipe make sure you’ll never forget the taste. Served with coconut ice cream it would happily top off my last meal…

Recipe

1 x Blackcurrant almond tart recipe
1-2 limes
2 tbsp icing sugar
Pinch salt
Mint to decorate

Make the basic tartlets as per the recipe link above adding the zest of 1 lime to the frangipane mixture.
For the icing, mix about 2 tbsp of icing sugar with a tiny amount of lime juice and mix until thick. Add more icing sugar if its too runny. Spoon into a plastic piping bag and snip off the end.
Once cool, ice a neat pattern or random design on top.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 75°C. Place the zest of 1- ½ a lime on a piece of parchment on a baking tray and dry in the low oven for about 20 minutes to intensify the flavours. Alternatively you can leave it to dry overnight. Mix the dried zest with a tiny pinch of salt.
Scatter sparingly on top of the tarts and top with a few dainty leaves of mint.

Rhubarb Sorbet and Ginger Treacle Tart

April 22, 2014 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

I really think this is one of the prettiest and simplest desserts that you can have this time of year. Nothing but some old stale breadcrumbs, humble hardy grown rhubarb and some sweet tangy ginger. Cold golf balls of frozen candy floss to top a pointy slice of warm ginger spiced treacle tart after the slow roasted spring lamb shoulder we devoured for Easter lunch.

I’ve always grown my own rhubarb letting it ripen naturally around the summer time into gangly red and green fingers of sweet and sour goodness. But Portobello market is bursting with the ‘forced’ type at the moment and I couldn’t resist bagging some of the leggy, blushing pastel pink stems for this killer sorbet.

Serves 12

Rhubarb Sorbet

800g forced, pink rhubarb, chopped
175g caster sugar
100ml water
1 lime

Mix the chopped rhubarb with the caster sugar and and place in a saucepan. Heat gently with the water until beginning to soften and simmer for about 5 minutes.
When tender, remove from the heat, squeeze in the lime juice and leave to cool slightly.
Puree until smooth, taste and adjust with sugar or lime (it should be a little sweeter than you like as the freezing with dampen this) and then churn in an ice cream maker for about 30 minutes. Alternatively, pour into a container and freeze, mixing every 30mins-1hr to break up the ice crystals until set.

Ginger Treacle Tart

Pastry

125g chilled butter
250g flour
Zest ½ orange
Cold water

Filing

200g white breadcrumbs (the staler the better)
400g golden syrup
2 eggs, beaten
Pinch ground ginger
2-3 balls of preserved stem ginger, chopped finely
½ lemon, zest and juice

Start with the pastry. Mix the butter into the flour in a processor or with your hands until you form a breadcrumb like texture. Mix in the orange zest. Add a spoonful of cold water, a small bit at a time and mix into the flour and butter until you can form a smooth dough. Shape into a disc, wrap in cling film and leave to chill for about 30 minutes or so in the fridge.
Grease and line a 20-22cm tart tin and preheat the oven to 180°C. Remove the pastry from the fridge and leave to adjust to room temperature before rolling out on a floured surface to about the thickness of a pound coin. Line the greased tin pressing the pastry into the case. Chill the casing for about 10 minutes if you can.
Prick the base with a fork to stop it rising up when cooking and place a sheet of parchment on top followed by some heavy baking beans or dry raw rice. Push it right up to the edges to keep the parchment down.
Bake blind for 20-25 minutes until the casing if lightly golden and cooked. Remove the beans and baking sheet for the final 5 minutes to brown and cook the base.
Remove from the oven and reduce the heat to 160°C.
Now, warm the golden syrup in a saucepan until molten. Remove from the heat and add the ginger, lemon, breadcrumbs and stir to combine. Mix in the eggs making sure the mixture if not too hot first or these will scramble.
Pour into the pre-baked tart tin and bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes until golden and set.
Serve warm with the rhubarb sorbet and some slow roasted vanilla speckled rhubarb on the side or a good quality vanilla ice cream.

Fig, Coconut and Chocolate Tart

October 20, 2013 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

This is another gem of a recipe that I’d hungrily bookmarked too long ago from a fairly vintage and thumbed copy of Vogue’s ‘Entertaining and Travel’. Being unavailable in the UK, I’ve only a prized handful of these gorgeous and teasing magazines from a friends visits to Dubai. However, the recipes are a pleasing port of call for inspiration and I shall attribute the belated testing of this recipe to ‘savouring’ of my limited supply.

With a punnet of figs putting on a brave face in the face of an over-ripe death sitting safely in the fridge it seemed like an Autumn pleaser. With the added bonus that I ADORE anything with coconut it certainly was pleasing…

Makes 1 large tart (or use smaller ones if preferred)

Pastry

225g plain flour
2 tbsp icing sugar
125g unsalted butter, chilled and cubed
1 egg

Filling

200g desiccated coconut
300ml weak, cooled tea
5 eggs
220g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
Grated zest 1 lemon
100g dark chocolate, chopped (Min 70%)
6 figs
Honey to glaze

Preheat the oven to 180°C and grease and line a 26cm, deepish tart tin.
For the pastry, place the butter, flour and icing sugar in food processor and blend until you get a breadcrumb-like texture (or rub together by hand). Add the beaten egg and combine until you form a smooth dough, being gentle when handling. Wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Roll the chilled pastry onto a floured surface and line the greased tart tin. Place on a baking tray and chill for at least 30 minutes.
Line with baking paper and fill generously with baking beans and bake blind for 15-20 minutes until the edges are a light golden. Remove the beans and return to the oven to allow the base to cook and turn pale gold. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin.
Reduce the oven to 170°C.
Place the coconut in a large bowl and cover with the tea. Whisk the eggs, sugar, vanilla and lemon together in another bowl before adding the soaked coconut.
Scatter the chopped chocolate over the base of the pastry case and top with the coconut-egg filling.
Bake for about 30-35 minutes until set and golden. Leave to cool in the tin.
Slice the figs into circles and place on top of the cooled tart in concentric circles. Warm a few tbsps of runny honey in a sauce pan and use a pastry brush to glaze the figs. Scatter with more coconut and serve with a large spoonful of lime/lemon scented mascarpone if you like!

Caramelised Garlic Tart

September 17, 2013 Comments Off read Vegetables and Salads

I’d seen this recipe in my thumbed copy of Ottolenghi’s ‘Plenty’ too many times to flick past it again. I’d heard good things about it…they’re true by the way. The original recipe calls for puff pastry which I think would have tipped me over the edge into food heaven but I used a lighter flaky shortcrust infused with thyme after an indulgent week that just couldn’t handle the butter content of puff. Either pastry is fine but I suggest puff just to do it justice. Agreed, when you read the recipe and see 3 heads of garlic, separated and peeled you may find yourself navigating away to another site. However, there is no need to contemplate taking a half day off work as it really won’t take long and you’ll be rewarded with the benefits on eating. The garlic is sweet and glazed when cooked and teasingly moreish.

Serves 6-8

375g puff pastry, rolled/ 1 quantity of shortcrust pastry flavoured with thyme (optional)
3 heads garlic, cloves separated and peeled
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
220ml water
Pinch sugar
1 tsp each chopped rosemary and thyme
240g goats cheese- a mix of soft and hard or a mix of cheeses if you’re not a goat cheese lover
2 medium eggs, beaten
100ml double cream
100ml creme fraiche

Preheat the oven to 180°C . Grease and line a tart tin (about 28cm) and line with the rolled puff pastry. (You can also use a shortcrust pastry which is what I actually did when I made it). Prick all over with a fork and line with a sheet of parchment and some baking beans. Bake blind for about 15-20 minutes until mostly cooked and then remove the beans and parchment and return the case to the oven for 5-10 minutes to allow the base to brown. Remove from the oven and set aside.
Meanwhile, cook the cloves of garlic in boiling water for 3 minutes and drain.
Return the garlic to a clean pan with the a splash of oil and fry for a few minutes on a high heat. Add the balsamic vinegar and the water, boil and simmer for 10 minutes.
Add the sugar and the herbs and a pinch of salt. Simmer for another 10 minutes until the liquid begins to reduce and turn syrupy. Set aside.
In a jug, whisk the eggs, creams and plenty of seasoning.
In the pre-baked tart case, crumble or grate over your choice of cheese and then top with the garlic cloves and syrup. Add some more thyme leaves also if you like.
Fill the gap of the tart with the cream mixture and bake at 160°C for 35-40 minutes until set and golden brown.

I served mine with a fresh rocket and baby cos salad with some griddled courgette slices, toasted pine nuts, wafers of parmesan cheese all dressed lightly with lemon juice and olive oil. Devine!

Blackcurrant and Almond Tart with Blackcurrant Sorbet

June 4, 2013 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

If I had to chose my last super then without a doubt this tart would be for dessert as it is literally my downfall. It’s taken from ‘Sarah Raven’s’ allotment inspired cookbook and its a serious crowd pleaser. If you can’t get hold of blackcurrants then other fruit like blackberries will work too.

This tart always makes an appearance during blackcurrant season and is one of those default and faithful desserts that I can be confident will always be loved if I’m stuck for inspiration. I love it served with a creamy coconut ice cream and with that as my last meal I would contently go. However, we have an obscene amount of blackcurrants on the allotment which, after tedious and hand-staining picking, provides us with multiple bags of these little currants. Seeing as I have now exhausted the Cassis and blackcurrant jam making process, I ventured into the world of fruit sorbets to go with the tart. Its super sweet and shiny like a well polished cricket ball and is wonderfully refreshing.

Sorbet

500g blackcurrants
250g caster sugar

Blackcurrant Almond Tart (makes one large or two small tarts)

200g ground almonds
200g caster sugar
200g unsalted butter
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
200g blackcurrants
Icing sugar

Start with the sorbet. Wash the blackcurrants well and tip them, while still wet, into a large pan.
Add the sugar and heat gently. Heat until the sugar melts and the mixture begins to turn dark purple and the berries just begin to burst. I added a few splashes of water to help the process along. Just as the berries begin to burst, remove from the heat and puree in a food processor or liquidiser
Pass through a fine sieve and discard the pulp. Cool in a jug in the fridge then churn in an ice cream maker until frozen and smooth. Alternatively, freeze in a shallow container, forking every 20 minutes or so to break up the ice crystals.
For the cake, preheat the oven to 180°C and line one 23cm round tart tin or 2 smaller tins.
In a food processor, cream the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time between handfuls of ground almonds and mix until all is incorporated. Add the vanilla.
Spoon into your lined tart case. Scatter the blackcurrants evenly over the top and bake for 30-40 minutes until cooked. It can take longer depending on the state of your ingredients and the depth of the tin but if it needs longer than 40 minutes, just make sure it doesn’t brown too much and cover with foil if needed.
Cool on a wire rack and allow to firm up a little. Dust with icing sugar and serve with the sorbet (or coconut ice cream alternatively) and a sprig of mint!

Portuguese Cinnamon Tarts with Lavender Caramel

May 10, 2013 Comments Off read Sweet Treats

These have been adapted from Jamie Oliver’s interpretation of the Portuguese custard tart or- ‘Pastel de nata’. It seemed like a good way of using up a slab of puff pastry and an egg whilst keeping my mind sane and grounded during all this revision…

½ block puff pastry (about 250g ish)
Pinch cinnamon
1 egg
120g creme fraiche
Zest of 1/2 lemon
5 tbsp caster sugar
Seeds from ½ vanilla pod/ a splash of vanilla extract
Small pinch of lavender flowers

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Roll out the pastry into a rectangle, about 1 pound coin thickness and about 25cm long. Scatter with the cinnamon and roll into a swiss roll shape down the long side.
Cut into 6 rounds (they should look like uncooked danish pastries) and then liberally press each into a a non-stick or greased muffin tin pushing the pastry down in the middle and up the sides, squashing it to mould it into the tin. Bake for about 10 minutes until just going golden. You may need to use the end of a rolling pin or something round to press the middle down if it puffs up while cooking.
Make the filling by mixing the beaten egg, creme fraiche, 1tbsp of the caster sugar, lemon zest and vanilla in a bowl.
When the pastry seems to have cooked enough pour in the filling and cook for another 10 minutes or so until set with a slight wobble. Remove from the oven and quickly make the caramel.
Melt the meaning sugar in a dry frying pan until beginning to melt. As soon as it begins to turn golden and liquidy, remove from the heat, add a scatter of lavender flowers and then quickly pour or spoon generously over the top of the tarts before the caramel becomes to hard. Allow to cool and harden.