Maids of Honour Tarts
Flaky puff pastry tartlets filled with spiced, citrus-scented curd cheese custard over a delicate layer of raspberry jam.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 25 min
- Total
- 45 min
- Servings
- 12
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Calories
- 185 kcal
Equipment
- •12-hole bun tin
- •8 cm fluted pastry cutter
- •mixing bowl
- •rolling pin
- •wire rack
Nutrition
Per serving, approximate
- Calories
- 185 kcal
- fat
- 12 g
- carbs
- 16 g
- fibre
- 1 g
- protein
- 4 g
- calories
- 185 kcal
Instructions
- 1
Preheat the fan oven to 180°C and lightly grease a 12-hole bun tin with butter.
- 2
Unroll the puff pastry sheet onto a lightly floured work surface.
- 3
Cut out 12 discs using an 8 cm fluted cutter and gently press each into the tin holes.
- 4
Spoon half a teaspoon of raspberry jam into the base of each pastry case.
- 5
Beat the curd cheese, caster sugar, melted butter, egg yolks, ground almonds, lemon zest, and nutmeg until smooth.
- 6
Divide the curd cheese mixture evenly between the pastry cases, filling each about three-quarters full.
- 7
Bake on the middle shelf for 20 to 25 minutes until the pastry is crisp and the tops are golden.
- 8
Leave the tarts to settle in the tin for 10 minutes before lifting onto a wire cooling rack.
- 9
Dust very lightly with icing sugar before serving warm or at room temperature.
Chef's tips
Drain the curd cheese in a sieve lined with kitchen paper before mixing to prevent soggy pastry bases. Keep the puff pastry thoroughly chilled until ready to cut so that it puffs neatly in the oven.
Ingredient substitutions
- curd cheese → firm whole-milk ricotta
- raspberry jam → lemon curd
Storage
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days.
Reheating
Warm on a baking tray in a fan oven at 160°C for 5 minutes to crisp the pastry.
Common mistakes to avoid
- •Overfilling the pastry cases, which causes the cheese filling to bubble over the edges and burn.
- •Using warm pastry dough, leading to a greasy crust that fails to rise into crisp, flaky layers.
Serving suggestions
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