Egg custard tart

When it comes to puddings, The Gentleman's opinions can be quite ruthless. Though nothing if not consistent. I don't think I've ever made anything that wouldn't have been greeted with "with custard it'd be even nicer". No wonder then that one of his all time favourites is this tart (no, I'm not referring to myself). Baked egg custard. Or, as it's known to some, egg custard. The ingredients are just that simple: Cream and eggs. And there you have it. 

Much like clafoutis and flan there are two schools when it comes to eating this: others like it while it's still a bit warm and jiggly. Others prefer it cooled and fully set. 

The original recipe came from here, though my own tart tin was so much bigger I had to multiply it by 1,5. This recipe did omit sugar entirely, so I too skipped it. The base turned out nice, but since it's missing the sugary sweetness, it does remind me of the buttery richness of puff pastry. Which is why I'm tempted to use this for savoury tarts instead. I'm already devising a recipe for a salmon tart...! Stay tuned!

Base:

3,5 dl all purpose flour

125 g butter

3-5 tbsp cold water

Rub the flour with butter to a crumbly mixture. This should be done as quickly as you can so it won't get too warm. Then add water 1 tbsp at a time until the mixture starts sticking together. Wrap tightly in cling film and let rest in the cold for half an hour.

Then roll it to a thin disc slightly bigger than the tart tin and, rolled around the rolling pin transfer to the tin. Trim the edges and let rest in cold while you're making the filling.

The custard:

4 eggs
2 yolks
3/4 dl sugar
7 dl cream
1 vanilla pod

Pre-heat the oven to 200°. Whisk the eggs and yolks lightly. Dip a pastry brush into the mixture and brush the base with it. This helps seal the surface - no blind baking needed! Split the vanilla pod, scoop out the seeds and combine with cream. Toss the skin in as well. Bring to boil and let cool. Then remove the skin of the vanilla pod. Whisk sugar into the egg-mixture and then, continuing to stir, add cream. Pour into the shell and carefully place the tin in the oven. Bake for 10 minutes at the lower part of the oven and then bring the heat down to 180°. Continue baking for 20 minutes until the filling has set. Let cool before serving.

Though this comforting pudding does have certain retro charm,
the Pacman-style staging was purely coincidental.

Had I had that blowtorch, I might have sprinkled some sugar on the ready, cooled tart and burnt the surfaced crème brûlée style. The crisp exterior would have complimented the creamy, rich interior pretty well...!


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