Custard and Chocolate Tarts

March Baking Time - our first try in making our own tarts. Yummy!!!

Custard and Chocolate Tarts

For Sweet Tart Dough

Ingredients

• 285g unsalted butter (at room temperature)
• 150g icing sugar (sifted)
• 100g finely ground almond powder 
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/s tsp vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs (at room temperature, lighly beaten)
• 490g all-purpose flour

Method

1. Place butter in the bowl (beat on low speed until creamy)
2. Add sugar, almond powder, salt, vanilla and eggs
   (on low speed beat to blend the ingredients, scraping down the sides of bowl as needed, 
3. dough may look curdled is ok)
4. Add flour in 3 or 4 additions and mix until mixture become a soft moist dough
   (at low speed, a matter of seconds so dont overdo it)
5. Gather the dough into a ball 
6. Gently press each into disk and wrap in plastic
7. Allow the dough to rest in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, or for up to 2 days, before rolling and baking (dough can be wrapped airtight and frozen for up to a month)

Note

• Make this at least 1 day in advance because you need to chill and rest the dough for a minimum 4 hours or up to 2 days, before rolling and baking
• Please make the full quantity because lessening the measurement may not yield the best results
• Unused dough can be kept in refrigerator for up to 2 days or wrapped airtight and frozen for a month
• Frozen dough take about 45 minutes to an hour at room temperature to reach a good rolling out consistency. 
• Baked crust can be kept uncovered at rom temperature for about 8 hours

Prepare for baking

1. Pinch balls of dough and press them into each tart mould using your thumb
   Make sure you press more around the bottom rims where dough tends to gather
2. Place them back into the fridge for another 15 minutes before baking
3. While dough is chilling, preheat oven at 180°C
4. Put dried uncooked rice on the tart mould before baking
5. Fully bake the crust for about 20 minutes or until they turn golden
6. Transfer the crust to a rack to cool
   (Can keep uncovered at room temperature for 8 hours)

Oven Temperature: 180°C (Place rack in center of oven)

Time to Bake: 20 minutes

For the Crème Pâtissière

Ingredients

1. 1 cup of milk (236 ml)
2. 2 egg yolks
3. 1/4 cup caster sugar (55g)
4. 1/8 tsp vanilla extract
5. 2 tbsp cornflour
6. 1 pinch salt (only if not adding butter or using unsalted butter)
7. 1/2 tsp unsalted butter, for additional shine and firmness
8. Picture adapted from The Little Teochew

Method

1. Whisk together egg yolks, 1/4 cup milk (60ml), sugar and vanilla extract. 
2. Mix in cornflour and salt (if using).
3. Bring the remaining milk to a heat (just below boiling point) in a saucepan. 
4. Pour the hot milk in small stream into the egg mixture, whisking constantly with a balloon whisk as you pour (very important). Once incorporated, pour everything back into the saucepan.
5. Whisk the mixture over medium heat until it thickens and firms up. 
6. Remove from heat and whisk in butter.
7. Pour the hot custard into a bowl and plunge the bottom of the bowl into another larger bowl of iced-water to cool, give it a whisk occasionally. 
8. Once it reaches room temperature, scoop the crème pâtissière into a piping bag (twist the open end to seal up the custard) or into a ketchup bottle. 
9. Keep in the refrigerator until ready to use.

• A: Add yolks, 1/4 cup milk, vanilla beans, salt, cornflour in a bowl. In the meantime, bring the remainder 3/4 cup milk to a scald in a saucepan.B: Mix your egg mixture well.
• C: When the 3/4 cup milk is hot, stream it into the egg mixture to temper the yolks. You will get a pale-coloured, creamy liquid.
• D: Pour the liquid back into the saucepan and cook on low heat, stirring constantly. It will continue to thicken as it cooks.
• E: Add in butter. Just keep stirring until the whisk leaves swirls from the stirring. As it cools, the custard will thicken even further. 
• F: I like to store the crème pâtissière in a ketchup bottle because it makes the job of filling the choux puffs easier.

Assembling the Tarts

1. Hull and half the strawberries. Set aside.
2. Pipe the crème pâtissière into tart shells, into a rounded mound. This will provide the fruits with some support to stand at an angle.
3. Place the strawberry halves all around.
4. Close gaps with blueberries (optional).
5. Glaze the fruits (not the tart rims)
6. Strawberry jam, which intensified the flavour of the fresh strawberries.
   Other fruits, apricot jam is usually preferred because it is clear and does not mask the true colours of the fruits. (don't need a lot of jam ... as long as the fruits look shiny)
7. Chill the tarts (in a covered container) in the fridge till it is time to serve. The colder, the better. These are best eaten fresh. Do not keep them for more than 24 hours.

Recipe adapted from: The Little Teochew