Classic English Egg Custard Tart Recipes

CLASSIC ENGLISH EGG CUSTARD TART

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Place the flour, butter, and salt into a large bowl. Rub the butter into the flour with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs, working as quickly as possible to prevent the dough from becoming warm.
• Add the very cold water to the mixture and then, use a cold knife to stir until the dough binds together. Add more water a teaspoon at a time if the mixture is too dry. Wrap the dough, and chill for a minimum of 15 minutes, up to 30 minutes.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll the chilled dough into a 12-inch round. Fit the dough into a 9- to 9 1/2-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. Don't overstretch the pastry while rolling, as it may crack in the oven. Trim the edges of the dough evenly with the top of the tart pan. Lightly dock the bottom of the dough in the tart pan. Transfer the pan to the refrigerator for 30 minutes, or alternatively freeze for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 375 F.
• Line the tart with parchment, fill with dry beans or pie weights, and bake until the edges are dry and light brown, about 15 minutes.
• Remove the parchment and the pie weights and continue to bake until the bottom crust is light golden, 5 to 8 minutes more. Remove from the oven and set aside while you make the filling.
• Gather the ingredients. Lower the oven to 325 F.
• In a large bowl, lightly beat the eggs and egg yolks with the sugar.
• In a medium saucepan, warm the cream to a gentle simmer over medium heat.
• Drizzle the cream slowly over the beaten eggs, whisking constantly to prevent cooking the eggs. Add the vanilla extract, if using.
• Place the tart pan on a rimmed baking sheet. Pour the egg-cream mixture through a fine sieve into the tart shell (if you have some remaining custard, you can bake it separately in an oven-proof ramekin).
• Sprinkle evenly with the grated nutmeg . Transfer to the oven and bake until the edges of the custard are firm, and the center is set, but still wobbles a bit in the center when the pan is gently nudged, 24 to 27 minutes. The custard will firm up even more as it cools, so be careful not to overbake.
• Let the baked tart cool to room temperature. Carefully remove the tart from the pan and serve.

EGG CUSTARD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Whisk milk, eggs, sugar, salt, and vanilla together in a bowl until completely combined. Pour egg mixture into 6 custard cups; sprinkle tops with nutmeg. Place cups in a baking pan and fill pan with enough hot water to reach halfway up the sides of the custard cups.
• Bake in the preheated oven until custards are set, about 1 hour. Cool completely.

A VERY PROPER ENGLISH CUSTARD

Steps:

• Bring milk and cream to a simmer slowly on low heat.
• Whisk the sugar and cornstarch together, add the egg yolks, combine well.
• Slowly whisk the warm milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Add vanilla. Return to the saucepan and stir gently until thickened. Serve hot, or cool to use as a layer in trifles, or fill tart pans.
• Tip. If using it hot, it can be kept warm in a jug set in a pan of hot water with a bit of cling film on top to prevent a skin forming.

OLD-FASHIONED BAKED EGG CUSTARD TART WITH NUTMEG

Steps:

• To make the pastry, first of all sift the flour with the pinch of salt into a large bowl, holding the sieve up high to give it a good airing. Then add the lard and butter and, using only your fingertips, lightly and gently rub the fat into the flour, again lifting the mixture up high all the time to give it a good airing.
• When everything is crumbly, sprinkle in about 1 tablespoon of cold water. Start to mix the pastry with a knife and then finish off with your hands, adding a few more drops of water, till you have a smooth dough that leaves the bowl clean. Then pop the pastry into a polythene bag and let it rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, pre-heat the oven to gas mark 5, 375°F (190°C) and pop the baking sheet in to pre-heat on the centre shelf.
• After that, roll the pastry out into a circle on a surface lightly dusted with flour, giving it quarter turns to keep its round shape; it's a good idea at this stage to put the tin lightly on top of the pastry - the size needs to be 1 inch (2.5 cm) bigger all round. Now transfer it, rolling it over the pin, to the tin, and press it lightly and firmly around the base, sides and rim. Now take a sharp knife and trim the overlapping pastry. Then press the rim of the pastry so that about ¼ inch (5 mm) overlaps the edge.
• Next, roll the trimmings and cut out about 24 leaves, making veins in them with the blunt side of the knife. Now brush the whole surface of the pastry case with some of the beaten eggs, arranging the leaves all around the rim, overlapping them. Brush these, too, with beaten egg. Now prick the base of the tart with a fork, then place it on the baking sheet and bake on the centre shelf for 20 minutes, until the pastry is crisp and golden. Check after 4 minutes to make sure that the pastry isn't rising up in the centre. If it is, prick it again a couple of times, pressing it back down with your hands. After 20 minutes, remove it from the oven, leaving the baking sheet there, and reduce the temperature to gas mark 3, 325°F(170°C).
• Now place the cream in a saucepan and bring it up to a gentle simmer, then whisk the beaten eggs and sugar together in a large heatproof jug using a balloon whisk - but not too vigorously because you don't want to make bubbles. Then pour the hot liquid over the beaten eggs, add the vanilla extract and half the nutmeg and whisk briefly again.
• Now place the pie tin back on the baking tray with the oven shelf half out and have ready the rest of the grated nutmeg on a piece of foil. Carefully pour the filling into the pastry case (it will be very full) and scatter the rest of the nutmeg all over, then dot with the softened butter and bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes, until the filling is golden brown, firm in the centre and slightly puffed up. Serve it warm or slightly cooled at room temperature.

CUSTARD TARTS

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Take a sheet of shortcrust pastry and use a 10cm cookie cutter to cut 12 circles into the pastry. Press each circle into the holes of a cupcake tray. Scrunch up squares of baking paper, then use to line each of the pastry cases. Fill each with baking beans or uncooked rice, pressing them in a little, and bake for 10 mins. Remove the beans/rice and the baking paper and bake for 5 mins more, until the base is starting to colour slightly. Remove from the oven and reduce the temperature to 140C/120C fan/gas 1.
• Bring the cream, milk, vanilla bean paste and a small grating of nutmeg to the boil. Beat the egg yolks with the sugar until pale, then pour the hot milk and cream over, beating as you go. Strain custard into a jug, allow to settle for a few mins, then skim off any froth.
• Pour the custard into each of the tart cases, filling them as high as you can. Grate over a little more nutmeg on each, then carefully place back into the oven and bake for 15-20 mins, until the tarts look set with a slight wobble. Remove and cool, serve with a little more nutmeg freshly grated over the top.