Martha Monday: Raspberry Custard Tart

I actually made this tart for a friend's Easter dinner this year--even though I may have jumped the gun a little, as raspberry season is finally almost here and this would be a great, refreshing tart recipe to celebrate the early summer.  I especially love that the crust is a super easy phyllo pastry--So long, time-intensive crust baking on hot summer days!

Raspberry isn't usually a fruit I would associate with Easter, but this tart was listed in Martha's recommended Easter dessert recipes, so that must make it legit :) This recipe does take quite a few raspberries, so feel free to substitute any other summer fruit if raspberries aren't on sale at your local grocery, or you don't have easy access to bulk berry picking.

A couple of notes: I wasn't able to find créme fraîche, so I went with a pastry cream recipe for the filling rather than a strict custard and I honestly couldn't even tell the difference. I would recommend making sure your custard is really set after baking (mine was still a little jiggly) and also let the tart sit in the fridge for a little while before serving if you have the time, otherwise it doesn't keep its shape as well during serving. I also decided to brush the berries with a little melted apricot jam to make them shine a little bit more, but this is completely optional.

My fancy shmancy pie weights :)

Really proud of myself for actually cooling the custard in an ice bath...which I usually skip out of sheer laziness

Raspberry Custard Tart
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 cup créme fraîche
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
4 cups raspberries (about four 6-ounce containers)

1. Roll out pastry sheet to a 12-by-14-inch rectangle. Line a 10-inch ceramic tart dish with pastry, pressing it into bottom and up side of dish. Trim edge, leaving 1/2 inch to hang over rim of dish. Refrigerate dough 20 minutes.

2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prick dough all over with a fork. Generously line shell with parchment, and fill with pie weights or dried beans. (Parchment should drape over rim of dish to prevent shell from overbrowning.) Bake shell 35 minutes. Remove parchment and weights, and bake shell until pale golden brown, about 2 minutes more. Let shell cool 5 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees.

3. Meanwhile, make the filling: Whisk together creme fraiche, sugar, vanilla, salt, eggs, and flour in a medium bowl until smooth.

4. Pour filling into tart shell, and bake until custard is set, about 20 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack 30 minutes. To serve, top tart with raspberries.

Tweet

Pin It