Blueberry Tart
With blueberry muffins a daily offering at Seven Layers, there were always plenty of blueberries around the shop. Wanting a new item for the pastry case toward the end of the first summer, I thought they could be put to use in a new dessert. Researching my favorite baking books, I discovered this Blueberry Tart in Paula Peck’s The Art of Fine Baking.
After a small test showed the recipe was a winner, I made a large batch and filled a few nine-inch and individual tarts. They were an immediate hit with my customers looking for something other than the standard blueberry pie.
This is a very unique, just sweet enough, delectable tart which works beautifully after dinner on a warm August or September evening. Forty percent of the blueberries are cooked on the stove with sugar and flavorings until a thick jam is produced, then the remaining fresh berries are stirred in. It is just enough jam to hold the berries together, which allows the fresh blueberry taste to shine through.
Garnishing the edge with a band of whipped crème fra®che provides a lovely contrast in color with the deep blue filling. The unbaked P¢te Sucr©e shell may be prepared up to two weeks ahead and stored in the freezer, making this a very easy dessert to produce at the last minute. You will need a total of five cups of blueberries for the filling.
Blueberry Tart
| Yield: 1 9†tart | # of Servings: 8 to 10 |
Ingredients:
1 recipe P¢te Sucr©e
Blueberry Filling
2 cups (9.35 oz / 265 g) blueberries, picked through, rinsed and dried
½ cup (3.5 oz / 99 g) sugar
2 tsp grated lemon rind
1 ½ tbl (.75 fl oz) fresh lemon juice
½ tsp ground cinnamon
3 cups (14.65 oz / 415 g) blueberries, picked through, rinsed and dried
Garnish
16 oz (454 g) crème fra®che
¼ cup (1.8 oz / 51 g) sugar
Heavy cream, as needed
Tools and equipment needed:
- 1 9†removable bottom tart shell
- Rolling pin
- 2-qt. heavy bottom sauce pan
- Pastry bag with star tip (Ateco 325)
Pre-recipe preparations:
- In colander, rinse the blueberries (keeping the two amounts separated) and allow to dry off on a kitchen towel or paper towel lined half-sheet pan or cookie sheet.
- Take p¢te sucr©e out of refrigerator approximately 20 minutes prior to rolling out dough.
Directions:
P¢te Sucr©e tart shell:
- On a floured dusted counter, briefly knead the p¢te sucr©e to make it malleable. Roll out to a 11 ½â€œ to 12†circle, drape over rolling pin, and drape onto the tart shell.
- Gently press the dough into the corners, then roll the rolling pin against the edges to trip of the excess dough.
- Use your fingers to press together any splits in the pastry bottom. Use dough trimmings to seal any cracked or bare edges.
- Place in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours, or overnight. Dough may also be frozen after the dough is allowed to relax (minimize gluten development) in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
Baking the tart shell:
- Preheat the oven to 375 °F.
- Lightly spray a square of aluminum foil 14†by 12†with a non-stick cooking spray, place it on the dough, pressing into the corners.
- Fill with baking weights, dry beans, or rice and bake for around 20 minutes, or until the dough has set and there are no raw spots of dough visible.
- Remove the beans and bake for another 10 minutes, or until the dough has just started to lightly color.
- Remove from oven and let cool.
Blueberry Filling:
- In heavy 2-qt saucepan, combine blueberries, sugar, lemon rind, lemon juice and ground cinnamon.
- While stirring occasionally with a heat-proof spatula or wooden spoon, cook over low heat just until the sugar is dissolved.
- Increase the heat to medium-high, and bring the mixture to a boil and cook, stirring occasionally, for approximately 8 minutes, until the mixture thickens to a jam-like consistency.
- Remove from the heat and let cool for 10 minutes.
- Gently mix in remaining blueberries. Pour berry filling into tart shell and set aside to cool and set.
- Spoon berry mixture into tart shell, set aside to cool. Tart may be refrigerated for 1 hour to facilitate cooling.
Decorating the tart:
- Whip the crème fra®che with the sugar until thick. Note – the crème fra®che will thin out at first before thickening.
- Using a large pastry bag and a star tip (Ateco 325 recommended) pipe a border of crème fra®che around the outside of the tart.
- Fold enough heavy cream (approximately 2 to 3 tbl) to thin out the whipped crème fra®che to a spoonable consistency. Serve in a bowl or dollop on each slice
- Tart may be kept in refrigerator for 2 days.
