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Blackcurrant Tart
A striking tart with a crisp, sweet pastry shell filled with a glossy blackcurrant curd and topped with fresh blackcurrants. The curd has an almost shocking intensity of flavour — sharp, fruity, and deeply purple — that makes this one of the most memorable summer tarts in the British baking repertoire.
Blackcurrant is usually ready July to August. More blackcurrant recipes, or see what to sow this month where you are.
Ingredients
- 200 g plain flour
- 100 g unsalted butter, cold and cubed
- 40 icing sugar
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tbsp cold water
- 400 g fresh blackcurrants
- 150 caster sugar
- 80 g unsalted butter
- 3 eggs
- 100 g fresh blackcurrants (to decorate)
Contains: cereals gluten, eggs, milk.
Method
- Make the pastry: rub the cold butter into the flour and icing sugar until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Mix in the egg yolk and cold water to form a dough. Chill for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C. Roll out the pastry and line a 23 cm loose-bottomed tart tin. Blind bake for 15 minutes, then remove the beans and bake for 10 minutes more. Cool.
- Make the blackcurrant curd: cook the blackcurrants with 50 ml of water until soft. Push through a fine sieve and return the smooth juice to the pan.
- Add the caster sugar and butter to the juice and stir over a low heat until dissolved.
- Remove from the heat. Beat the eggs and strain into the blackcurrant mixture, stirring well.
- Return to a very low heat and stir continuously for 8–10 minutes until the curd thickens. Do not boil.
- Pour into the cooled tart shell and chill for 2 hours until set. Decorate with fresh blackcurrants and dust with icing sugar.
Tips
- Strain the beaten eggs through a sieve before adding to the curd to remove any chalaza and ensure a perfectly smooth finish.
- The curd is ready when it coats the back of a spoon thickly — patience is key as it must not boil.
Ring the changes
- Add the zest of one lemon to the curd for a blackcurrant lemon curd with extra brightness.
Keeping it
Store in the fridge for up to 3 days. The pastry will soften slightly over time.
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