Tarts denote anything with a pastry shell buttery and crumbly that is baked with or without the filling, which could be anything from custards, chocolate, fruits, nuts to whipped cream. So, for this instalment, we got you some spicy ones that are rich in autumnal flavors and as delicious as the ones that are popular on the global map. Try these easy sweet recipes at home!
A local favorite in Yorkshire, curd tarts are hard to come by and less popular than their sweeter counterparts because it's rustic at best. It has a shortcrust pastry base with a filling of curd cheese, sugar, eggs, and butter with a pinch or two of spices like cinnamon and nutmeg and an addition of Britain's favorite dry fruits – currants. The egg whites and yolks are separated first with the egg whites beaten till stiff and the rest of the ingredients mixed separately. The whites go in the yolk-spiced dry fruit mixture, mixed, added to the pastry base, and baked till golden with currants sticking out on top. Back in the day during local fairs, instead of curd cheese villagers would use beestings instead of curd cheese in these tarts.
A rich tart, rife with flavors, Mummentaart is a kind of cinnamon-spiced apple pie or tart from Luxembourg. The pastry base is slightly tangy as it incorporates quark, a kind of curd cheese. The dough is prepared and pressed into the baking fan followed by the filling made with apples, typically sour ones mixed with cinnamon, lemon juice, sugar and raisins. The filling is covered with another layer of dough on top of it, glazed with an egg wash and baked until golden. Like apple pie in any part of the world, it tastes fantastic hot and cold with a side of whipped cream on the side.
Another apple tart, popular in the Western part of Scotland, Apple Frushie uses honey and rose water in its filling. The term Frushie refers to the pastry crust because of its crumbly nature. Like most apple tarts and pies, this too has a dough crust that is transformed into a lattice. The Scots like their apple tart hot with a whisky-infused cream with their tart.
This tart comes from Italy's Apulia known for its beautiful sceneries and beaches and its hallmark is its strong cherries flavor, used in the tart. The buttery tart crust is filled with a filling of cherry jam, cocoa powder, eggs, butter, vanilla, cinnamon, almonds and Kirschwasser (the same sour morello cherry liqueur that goes into the German Black Forest Cake). The dough is prepared first and layered with the filling and another layer of dough from the top crust, that is cut into strips to form a lattice. It's brushed with egg wash and baked until golden and is best eaten cold.
From the Netherlands, this apple tart, unlike most of the apple tarts, is enjoyed alongside a cup of coffee. It's usually baked in a springform pan because of which it tends to be drier and the apples and dry fruits are chunkier in size. It uses the trademark cinnamon to spice the apples along with lemon juice that is neatly arranged into the pie crust, topped with strips of dough and baked. It is said have come from the Middle Ages and is one of the most rustic tarts from the Netherlands.
This Belgian tart is sweet and spicy and is quite famous and exclusively made in Lier, a Flemish town in the country. This tart has a thin pastry crust that the French use, called pâté brisée which is made deep and completely cylindrical. The filling is a thick and creamy puree made with coarse breadcrumbs, milk and flour binder by a caramel-like syrup; the mixture is spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, coriander and cloves. This tart is said to be at least a few hundred years old making it one of the oldest baked desserts in the country.
A hollow shortcrust pastry that is filled with pear preserve and ground almonds, sometimes incorporating dried fruits, with a chocolate glaze on top, Barchiglia is another tart from the Apulia region of Italy known for its beautiful and serene Mediterranean coastline. You will find this tart throughout the year but its chocolate glaze with a sweet filling inside makes it a very popular choice for Easter celebrations.
Inspired by the French or perhaps made by the French settlers in the US, this tart is from the US’ Lousiana and is a Cajun custard pie or tart. It has a pie shell that is super buttery and the filling is a custard, made with whipped cream, sugar, eggs or cornstarch, and vanilla. The tart is brushed with egg whites, and the pie crust that is and is baked. The custard remains jiggly in the centre and the burnt milk tart is often served with fresh fruits or a light dusting of powdered sugar.