Portugese Tarts

Portugese tarts are creamy, baked custard tarts in a crisp pastry shell.  They're super easy and are just so delicious that you will want to make more. I know this as I only made a few (which was probably just as well) but made me feel sad on the day.  I made them several weeks ago and, as usual, had not got around to posting them on the blog until now. I’ve been distracted by having a little fling with Instagram. It’s very tempting to just snap a photo, post it with very few words and hey presto there’s your story. No writer’s block involved nor, for that matter, much styling. But it is nice to come back to the blog now and again.

If you’re a perfectionist, you’ll want to know in advance that the custardy filling does sag a little after baking. But hey the taste is the thing here so let's just let that one go, okay?

Before starting, bear in mind there's an hour's chilling time once you've placed the pastry circles in the tin.

Add a sprinkle of cinnamon if you want, it’s in most recipes, but I left it out as I’d just made a chocolate cake which contained cinnamon and the taste came through quite strongly.  As noted in the recipe below, I had no single cream so used double cream - double yummy I think! Well worth doing again ... and again.

Portugese Tarts

Serves 9

2 sheets frozen puff pastry
1 egg
2 egg yolks
100g caster sugar
2 tbsp cornflour
300ml cream*
100ml standard/full cream milk
a couple of strips of orange peel (I used mandarin)
vanilla bean

*I used the wonderful Lewis Road double cream as I didn't have single cream.


Remove pastry from freezer to defrost.

Lightly spray 9 holes of a 12-hole tart tin with oil or grease lightly with butter.

Using a 9cm diameter cookie cutter (or top of a glass or a lid) cut 9 circles out of the pastry and press gently into the holes to fit. Place in the fridge to chill for an hour.

Meanwhile, make the custard by placing the egg, two egg yolks, caster sugar and cornflour in a medium saucepan (don't turn heat on yet) and stir to combine. Add the milk and cream and stir again. Add orange or mandarin peel and whole vanilla bean and heat gently, stirring constantly until the mixture thickens and just comes to the boil.

Remove from heat, discard peel and vanilla bean (this can be rinsed, dried and used again). Transfer custard to a pouring jug and cover the top of the custard with plastic wrap to stop it from forming a skin. Leave to cool completely.

Heat oven to 220°C. Divide mixture evenly between the pastry cases and bake 20-25 minutes until pastry and custard are just starting to colour.

Remove from the oven, leave in tin for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

These are best eaten on the same day at room temperature. Actually, these are best eaten - full stop.

Chocolate Caramel Banoffee Tarts

Fridays, I have off.  I have had to train myself to go and do something I enjoy on these days otherwise  I can fritter the time away at home accomplishing what feels like nothing (even though it is not).  So I took off today to Ruben in Parnell Road.  Except I couldn't find it (incorrect street number on referring blogs) even though I wandered up and down a few times.  Fortunately I'd already spied Vaniye where I'd purchased some croissants for the weekend so I returned for a second time that morning and sat in their small but tastefully elegant space with a crisp, buttery almond croissant in all its gorgeousness and a good coffee.

Later I headed across town to the Capitol Cinema to take in the movie, Frances Ha, which I'd spotted but not had a chance to get to at the recent Auckland Film Festival.  It was funny to hear the elderly woman behind me commenting at the closing credits "well that was a lot about not much at all".  We were probably not the film's target audience age group really but the lead actress plays her part so endearingly well that she won me over.  Filmed in black and white and with nods to Woody Allen, it was amusing and sometimes awkward as it follows the late-twenties Frances as she tries to find her way in life (and homes).

What all this has to do with chocolate banoffee pies, I have no idea, except I had no other way of introducing them so I decided to waffle on about what I'd done today.

After our food bloggers' afternoon tea, I promised I'd share this recipe so here it is. This is the first time I've ever made banoffee pies (or in this case, chocolate caramel banoffee tarts) but I can assure you it will not be the last.  They are very tasty and not too decadent as they are only a mouthful or two!

If you make the tart shells ahead of time (they will keep for a couple of days in an airtight tin) it makes for a reasonably easy assembly on the day of eating.  I am sure they will also freeze well too.

The recipe used mini-muffin tins for cooking.  However I found these made tiny cases that were too small for the filling and the pastry too thick so I used tart tins.  Leave the banana slices and cream topping until you are ready to serve (brushing a teensy bit of lemon juice on the banana will stop it from  browning).

I'm sharing this recipe at Sweet New Zealand, hosted this month by Sweets & Brains.

Chocolate Caramel Banoffee Tarts

1 1/2 cups (225g) plain flour
1/4 cup (40g) icing sugar
1/4 cup (25g) cocoa powder
185g (6oz) cold butter, chopped coarsely
1 egg yolk
2 tsp iced water
1 small banana
1/3 cup (80ml) whipped cream

chocolate caramel filling

60g (2oz) butter, chopped coarsely
1/4 cup (55g) brown sugar, firmly packed
1 cup (300g) sweetened condensed milk
30g (1oz) good quality dark chocolate, chopped coarsely
2 tsp golden syrup or treacle


Place the sifted flour, sugar, cocoa and butter in a food processor and process until crumbly.  With motor running, add egg yolk and enough of the iced water to make ingredients cling together.  Turn the dough onto a floured surface (it will be still be crumbly) and knead gently until smooth.  Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Grease two 12-hole tart tins.  Roll out half the pastry between two sheets of plastic wrap or baking paper until just under 5mm (1/4 thick).  Cut out rounds to fit the holes in your tart tins (use the thin rim of a round wine glass or drinking glass to cut if you don't have anything else - just not your expensive crystal and a heavy fist!).

Ease the pastry neatly into the holes.  Repeat the process with the other half of pastry.  Prick the bases of the tarts with a fork and refrigerate again for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 220 degrees C.  Bake cases for about 12 minutes - watch carefully to ensure the tops do not burn.  Remove from the oven and leave in the tins for 5 minutes before removing to a cake rack to cool.  The cases can be made two days ahead.  Store in an airtight container if you are not going to use immediately.

chocolate caramel filling

Stir the butter and sugar in a small saucepan over a low heat until the sugar dissolves.  Add the condensed milk and stir for 5 minutes or until the mixture boils and thickens (make sure it does not catch on the bottom of the saucepan).

Remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate and golden syrup (or treacle) until smooth.  Remove from the heat.

Divide the hot caramel filling into the pastry cases.  Leave to cool and then refrigerate for 1 hour.

When ready to serve, place a slice of banana on top of each tart (brush very lightly with lemon juice if they will be sititng for a while - this stops the banana going brown) and then either pipe or dollop some whipped cream on the top.  Dust with sifted cocoa powder if you wish.

Just peachy

Ever since gifting myself Nigel Slater's Kitchen Diaries II at Christmas, the golden ribbon marker has been sitting at his peach pie recipe, (page 317 if you’re asking), just waiting.  The mere thought of fragrant summer peaches in a pastry would have been enough but listen to his description:

Peach pie.  Whisper the words.  Luscious fruit under a crust that must, surely, be as soft and crumbly as the most buttery shortcake.  It must sparkle with sugar and break tenderly under the fork. A crust that sighs rather than snaps.

Okay, sold, many times over.  Mr Slater has a wonderful way with words and I’m sure that if you bought this book and did nothing but read the diary entries you’d feel you’d spent your money well but you really would be missing out on all the comforting pleasures such as this pie which, I have to say, is a fine match for his words. It is all I dreamt it would be.  A sugary, crumbly pastry with a delectable, sweet peachy filling.  Oh my lord, it was good.

I am hosting Sweet New Zealand this month and this sweet peachy pie is my entry.  I'd love you to join in.  You have until the 29 March to submit your entry - rules and more details here.

Peach pie with lemon pastry 

(from Nigel Slater – Kitchen Diaries II)

Pastry 

150g butter

150g caster sugar

1 egg

grated zest of 1 lemon

250g flour

1 tsp baking powder

Filling

6 ripe peaches

2 tbsp caster sugar

grated zest of 1 orange

1 heaped tbsp cornflour

a little milk & extra caster sugar to dust the top

Method

Lightly butter a 24cm tin pie plate (18cm across the base).

Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.  Add the egg and beat to incorporate.  Add the lemon zest.

Sift the flour and baking powder into the bowl and fold gently into the mixture, bringing the dough together into a ball.  Knead the dough lightly for a minute or two on a floured surface.  Cut in half, wrap in cling film and place in the fridge for 30 minutes. 

Use one half of the dough to line the base of the pie plate.  Return the pie plate and the remaining dough to the fridge.

Turn on the oven to 180°C.  Halve the peaches and remove the stones.  Cut the halves into large pieces (cut them smaller if you are using individual tins) and place in a bowl with the sugar, orange zest and cornflour. Toss together gently, and spoon into the lined pie plate.

Brush the rim of the pastry in the pie dish with a little milk.  Roll out the second half of the pastry to fit over the top of the pie and place it gently across the top of the filling.  Trim off any excess.  Press the edges of the pastry to seal.   Brush the pie lightly with milk and dust with sugar.  Pierce a small hole in the top of the pie to allow steam to escape.

Bake for approximately 40 minutes until the pie is golden.  Leave to stand for 10-15 minutes before serving.

Serves 6.

Notes

I used 4 mini tart tins (see photo right), 11.5cm in diameter instead of the recipe’s metal pie tin but I have given the recipe in its original form using one large tin.  If you do use individual tins, you will probably only need 2 or 3 peaches and the cooking time will be reduced to approximately 25 minutes (and you will likely have leftover pastry which you can freeze).

Keep the pastry (and your hands) cool. The pastry, as Nigel comments, is very crumbly.  I tend to always roll any sticky or crumbly pastry between two swipes of cling film to make life easier.  When it comes to topping the pie, you simply peel back the top cling film sheet, scoop up the pastry and bottom layer of cling film from underneath, cover the filling with it and then carefully peel off the cling wrap.