Basic Tart Shell Recipes

THREE INGREDIENT MINI TART SHELLS

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and cream cheese.
• Gradually add flour until well mixed.
• Form into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
• Remove from fridge. Roll into 2-inch balls and place in 24-cup miniature muffin tin .
• Preheat oven to 350 F or 325 F for a dark pan .
• Use fingers to smash balls into tart shell shape. Fill shells with approximately 2 cups of filling, as desired. Depending on filling, the filled shells are baked from 15 to 25 minutes.
• Unfilled shells can be baked for 5 to 10 minutes.

CREAM CHEESE TART SHELLS

Steps:

• Blend cream cheese and butter or margarine. Stir in flour just until blended. Chill about 1 hour. This can be made ahead and chilled for up to 24 hours.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Shape dough into 24 one-inch balls and press into ungreased 1 1/2 inch muffin cups (mini-muffin size) to make a shallow shell. Fill with your favorite filling and bake for 20 minutes, or until the crust is light brown.

TART SHELLS

Steps:

• Sift flour and salt together into a medium bowl. Add shortening, and mix in with fingertips until the mixture resembles cornmeal. Add just enough ice water to form a dough. Gather into a ball, wrap in plastic, and place in refrigerator for a few minutes before rolling out.

BASIC TART SHELL

Steps:

• Mix flour and salt in food processor or mixing bowl. Add butter and process, or cut into flour with pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Mix egg yolk and ice water. With machine running, pour egg mixture through feed tube and process until dough comes together; or pour egg mixture over flour mixture and stir with fork.
• Shape dough into thick disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
• Roll out dough 1/8-inch thick on lightly floured surface. Line 9-1/2-inch tart pan with dough and trim edge even with top of pan. Refrigerate 15 minutes.
• Heat oven to 400 degrees.
• Prick bottom and side of shell with fork. Line tart shell with aluminum foil (dull side up) and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake 15 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and remove foil and weights. Let cool.

TART SHELL

Steps:

• Cream butter and sugar in a mixer with paddle. Slowly add egg yolks, beaten egg half, and vanilla. Add flour and mix until just combined. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill at least 2 hours. Remove from refrigerator, unwrap and roll on a floured surface into a 3/8-inch thick circle. Drape into an 11 or 12-inch tart pan and press into corners. Line pastry with parchment paper and fill with dried beans or pie weights and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes until light brown. While still warm, remove weights and parchment paper and brush slightly with a beaten egg white, taking care not to use too much and to only brush the inside of the shell. Let tart shell rest at room temperature until ready to fill.;

TART SHELL DOUGH

Steps:

• Process flour, salt, sugar, and butter in a food processor just until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds.
• With machine running, add ice water. Process just until dough starts to come together (no more than 15 seconds). Turn out dough onto plastic wrap; press into a flat circle, and wrap. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes or up to 2 days.

TART SHELLS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Put butter into bowl of electric mixer and start beating on medium speed. Cream butter until smooth.
• Add sugar gradually while beating. When well blended, add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
• Add almonds to mixture and beat thoroughly to blend.
• Sift together flour and baking powder and add, beating constantly.
• Scrape dough onto flat sheet of wax paper and shape it into a one-inch-thick rectangle measuring 10 by 6 inches.
• Cover dough in plastic wrap and chill 2 hours or longer.
• Lightly flour work surface and put dough on it. Roll dough out into square measuring 19 by 19 inches. With cutter about 4 inches in diameter cut out circles; there should be about 20. Gather scraps and roll dough out again. Cut into 6 to 8 more.
• Lightly butter 26 or more 3-inch tart pans and line with circles of dough. Prick bottom of each shell with fork tines.
• Arrange lined tins on baking sheet. Place in oven and bake about 15 minutes until crisp and lightly browned.