Friday 15 November 2013

Berry custard tart

I had half a carton of cream in the fridge, which was past it's use-by date, but still smelt absolutely fine. I also had the elderly remnant of a packet of fruits of the forest occupying valuable real estate in the freezer. There was a sheet of shortcrust pastry next to the fruits of the forest. I was in the middle of a nutmeg obsession which was screaming CUSTARD TART in my head. My purpose was clear.

With the ingredients to hand it wasn't going to be a luxurious, double-cream-and-eggyolk tart of extraordinary velvety depth. It was going to be a more austere animal with a firmer custard given body with whole eggs. I also wasn't going to faff about cooking the custard before pouring it into the pastry. It was going to have to look after itself.


Berry custard tart (makes 6-8 slices)


1 sheet frozen butter shortcrust pastry, thawed
Leftover double cream, made up to 300ml with milk
3 whole eggs
100g caster sugar
Frozen fruits of the forest - however much is left in the packet
Freshly grated nutmeg

Preheat oven to 180C. Line a pie plate with the pastry and blind bake for 15 minutes. Remove the baking beans and bake for another 10 minutes. Allow to cool.

Whisk the eggs and sugar together until light and fluffy, then thoroughly whisk in the milk and cream mixture. Allow to stand for 10 minutes so the air-bubbles rise to the surface, then gently skim off any froth with a spoon. Pour the custard into the cooled pastry shell, sprinkle the berries evenly over the surface and top with grated nutmeg. Bake for about 35 minutes or until golden brown but still wobbly. Cool for at least an hour before eating.

13 comments:

Cuisine de Provence said...

Guess what is taking up"valuable real estate" (love that one) in my freezer? This tart will be on our table right this afternoon - thanks for sharing!

Rachel said...

Oooh, I can smell that freshly grated nutmeg right off my computer screen. My freezer real estate is currently taken up with gobs of frozen peppers. Wish there were berries in there for at least part of that.

Barbara said...

How easy is that? And it looks delicious!

Amy said...

I love finding delicious ways to use up odds and ends! This custard tart looks delicious!!

Bettina Douglas said...

very Swiss in concept even if not traditional ingredients. It would have been delicious.

leaf (the indolent cook) said...

Great impromptu effort, looks delicious!

Alicia Foodycat said...

CdP - I hope you like it!

Rachel - it'd be good even without the berries, but I reckon you could reduce the sugar a little.

Barbara - oh it was!

Amy - thank you! I really hate waste.

Mother - yes, that's how I knew it would work even without pre-cooking the custard.

Leaf - thank you!

Joanne said...

What a lovely tart! It's amazing how the top almost gets brulee'd like that!

Couscous & Consciousness said...

Amazing tart. I totally love your, no-fuss, let it take care of itself approach to the custard filling - this is absolutely my kind of dessert.

grace said...

i wasn't expecting such a short and straightforward ingredient list--how fantastic!

Alicia Foodycat said...

Joanne - it doesn't have the flavour of a brulee, but the top does get a good colour.

Sue - I really wasn't in the mood for fussing about!

Grace - straightforward is good! You could use cinnamon instead of nutmeg, of course.

A Li'l bit of Chilli,...... please said...

It seemed to have done a superb job of 'looking after itself.' I want a slice!

Amy said...

Your Berry Custard Tart sounds lovely. I usually make a plain one for the holiday. I guess it's more fun to add some berries then. thanks for sharing.

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