All of our tarts, sweet and savoury, use the same pastry recipe. In fact, it’s the same recipe we’ve been using since day one (although the method has changed slightly to accommodate larger batches).
Our Pastry Recipe
Shortcrust Pastry (Pâte brisée)
Traditional pâte brisée is a lot “shorter” than our recipe. The name itself (which translates to “broken pastry”) suggests it should crumble and dissolve in the mouth, and as wonderful as this is to eat in a controlled environment, it isn’t very receptive to being placed in a box and being driven halfway across Melbourne in the passenger foot space of your car (note: we don’t recommend this transportation method). So, to get the texture, robustness and flavour that we require, we removed enough butter to create a biscuity texture that is still delicious in its own right, but that can still be picked up and eaten “handpie” style by the most discerning of tart fans.
The process for making our pastry in the shop takes three days, but for the book, we’ve put together an abridged version. We recommend nailing this version, because it forms the basis of the following recipes.
Makes 1 tart shell
• 200g plain (all-purpose) flour
• 100g cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
• 3g salt
• 50g water
Place the butter, flour and salt into a bowl (this process can also be done in a kitchen stand mixer or food processor). Using your fingers, work the ingredients together until they resemble fine breadcrumbs with no lumps of butter present.
Add the water a little at a time (or in a steady stream if using a kitchen stand mixer) until it forms a firm but malleable mixture. If you used a food processor earlier, it’d be best to finish this one off by hand.
Move the dough to your benchtop and work into a puck-sized shape, or flattened ball. Wrap with plastic wrap and allow to rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Place the pastry on a piece of baking paper and cover with a second piece of baking paper. Using a rolling pin, roll out the pastry into a circle roughly 35cm wide, and around 3mm thick. Allow the pastry to firm up again in the fridge for at least an hour before lining the tin (if lining the tin immediately, be sure to rest it for at least an hour).
Remove one piece of baking paper from the pastry and drape the pastry over your tart tin. You may find this easier to do with a rolling pin.
Press the pastry into the knuckles of the tart tin using the flats of your fingers.
Use a sharp knife to remove any excess trim from the edges of the pastry. Allow the pastry to sit for 15 minutes or so in the freezer for one final rest.
Take one large sheet of aluminium foil and gently press into the edges of the pastry shell, ensuring the sheet is big enough to go over the edge and completely line the tart. Fill it to the brim with uncooked rice, then fold the foil gently back over the top and place into the oven.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the edges of the pastry are a medium-golden colour. Remove from the oven and sneak a look under the foil to check the doneness. Cook until the colour is consistent, then allow to cool at room temperature. Remove the foil and rice when cool enough to touch.
Chocolate and Hazelnut Tart
Chocolate and hazelnut is a very familiar flavour profile to most, but its potential goes far beyond Ferrero Rocher, Kinder Buenos and Nutella. We initially started working on this tart for a Valentine’s Day collaboration with our friend and baker Miss Trixie Drinks Tea, but soon realised it was too delicious (and popular) to keep it out of the regular rotation of tarts in the shop. Using quality ingredients is key here as there are not many variables at work: a nice praline, chocolate, salt, sugar, cream and eggs.
• 1 x baked Shortcrust Pastry shell
• 100g dulce de leche – available in supermarkets and online
Hazelnut praline paste
• 80g hazelnuts
• 80g caster sugar
Chocolate hazelnut custard
• 560g pouring (whipping) cream
• 3g salt
• 65g caster sugar
• 240g egg yolks
• 145g dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids), callets or buttons
Preheat the oven to 165°C.
Spread the dulce de leche on the bottom of the pastry shell in a smooth, even layer.
Hazelnut praline paste
Roast the hazelnuts on a baking tray for about 15 minutes. Once they are a medium golden brown, remove from the oven and set aside. If the nuts still have skin on them, place them on a tea towel while still hot, gather the corners together, and roll them around inside the towel to loosen the skins. Shake the nuts out of the towel to separate them from the skins. Put a pot on the stove and gently melt the sugar over a low heat. Continue to cook until the caramel becomes deep brown, then add the warm hazelnuts. Stir to coat the nuts in the caramel, then tip onto a tray to cool slightly, just until they are warm.
Place the warm hazelnuts into a food processor, then blend until the oil starts to come out of the nuts and the mixture becomes a smooth paste, then decant into a container.
Chocolate hazelnut custard
Add the cream, salt, sugar and the hazelnut praline paste to a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer while whisking, then remove from the heat immediately. To temper the egg yolks, add them to a mixing bowl, then whisk in a small amount of the hot cream mixture until well incorporated. Add the chocolate to a large bowl, then add a small amount of the hot cream-praline mixture and whisk to combine. Add the remaining mixture and use a hand-held blender to blend until the mixture is shiny and smooth – to prevent any air from being incorporated into the mix, keep the head of the blender underneath the surface. Decant into a jug to use straight away – you want to keep it as warm as possible to ensure the mixture cooks evenly in the oven.
To bake
Place the prepared shell in the oven, then pour the custard over the dulce de leche layer. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the custard is slightly wobbly in the centre, then remove from the oven and cool.
Once the custard has completely cooled, remove the tart from the tin and portion into slices using a hot, sharp knife.
Raspberry and Jasmine Cheesecake Tart
The inspiration for this tart came from a dessert Gareth used to make at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal in London. Roasted white peaches were macerated in jasmine syrup and plated with yoghurt cream, freeze-dried raspberries and a raspberry meringue, served alongside a cold-infused jasmine tea. A cheesecake custard with jasmine works perfectly, as the high fat and dairy content softens the tea’s tannins and makes its fragrance the real hero.
• 1 x baked Shortcrust Pastry shell
• 70g dulce de leche – available in supermarkets and online
Raspberry gel
• 200g raspberries
• 80g water
• 110g caster sugar
• 5g pectin NH
• 5g citric acid
Cheesecake custard
• 200g cream cheese
• 360g pouring (whipping) cream
• 10g jasmine tea
• 125g caster sugar
• 240g egg yolks
Preheat the oven to 125°C.
Raspberry gel
Put the raspberries into a narrow measuring jug or container, then blend with a hand-held blender until very smooth. Place a saucepan with the raspberry purée and water on the stove, then bring to the boil. Combine the sugar with the pectin, then add to the liquid and whisk this mixture in. Boil again. Remove from the heat, add the citric acid, then use a hand-held blender to blend until smooth, then pass through a fine sieve. Allow the gel to cool and set until firm.
Cheesecake custard
Gently microwave the cream cheese briefly to soften. Add the cream, jasmine tea and sugar to a saucepan, then bring to a simmer over medium heat. Remove from the heat immediately. To temper the egg yolks, add them to a mixing bowl, then whisk in a small amount of the hot cream mixture until well incorporated. Add the remaining cream mix and cream cheese, then use a hand-held blender to blend until the mixture is shiny and smooth – to prevent any air from being incorporated into the mix, keep the head of the blender beneath the surface.
Strain the mixture through a sieve into a measuring jug to use straight away – you want to keep it as warm as possible to ensure it cooks evenly in the oven.
To bake
Spread the dulce de leche over the base of the prepared pastry shell, then place in the oven. Pour the custard on top of the caramel layer. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the custard is slightly wobbly in the centre, then remove from the oven and allow to cool.
To glaze
Once the custard has cooled sufficiently, melt the raspberry gel in a small saucepan over a low heat (pop the tart into the fridge to help the custard to firm up, which will also help the gel set faster). Once the gel has fully melted and started to simmer slightly, pour 220g of the gel in a circular motion from the inside of the tart moving outwards. Gently transfer the tart to the fridge to set. Once the gel is firm to the touch, remove the tart from the tin and cut in slices with a hot, sharp knife.
An edited extract from Tarts Anon, by Gareth Whitton & Catherine Way (Hardie Grant Books, RRP $50).
