Bozone (n.), The substance surrounding stupid people that prevents bright ideas from penetrating.



Monday, January 28, 2008

Perfect Custard Tart

So it's exam time in my cooking course and I've finally narrowed down my desert to a classic Custard Tart with Nutmeg as cooked by Marcus Wareing in the Great British Menu. This is an easy enough desert to prepare given sufficient time and patience.

Ingredients

For the pastry

225g/8oz flour, plus extra for dusting
pinch of salt
1 lemon, zest only
150g/5½oz butter
75g/3oz caster sugar
1 free-range egg yolk
1 free-range egg

For the custard filling

9 free-range egg yolks
75g/3oz caster sugar
500ml/17fl oz whipping cream
freshly grated nutmeg

Method

  1. Preheat the oven down to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
  2. For the pastry, rub together the flour, salt, lemon zest and butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the sugar, then beat together the egg yolk and whole egg and slowly add these, mixing until the pastry forms a ball. Wrap tightly in cling film and refrigerate for two hours.
  3. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface to 2mm/one eighth-in thickness. Use to line an 18cm/7in flan ring placed on a baking sheet. Line with greaseproof paper and fill with baking beans, then bake blind for about 10 minutes or until the pastry is starting to turn golden brown. Remove the paper and beans, and allow to cool.
  4. Turn the oven down to 130C/250F/Gas1.
  5. For the filling, whisk together the yolks and sugar. Add the cream and mix well. Pass the mixture through a fine sieve into a saucepan and heat to blood temperature.
  6. Fill the pastry case with the custard, until 5mm/¼in from the top. Carefully place in the middle of the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes or until the custard appears set but not too firm. Remove from the oven and cover the surface liberally with grated nutmeg. Allow to cool to room temperature.
Here's the video of the man himself baking the tart.

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