Pecan Tart
A pecan tart has to be one of my favourite ‘nut tarts’. There is something extremely addictive to the tastebuds about the natural, caramelised taste of the pecan nut, especially when mixed with a maple syrup buttery sauce and then encased in a crumbly rich shortcrust pastry – how heavenly delicious does that sound.
Traditionally always made and served as a dessert for the Thanks Giving celebrations in the United States in Autumn, however, this wonderful nut tart (or pie as it is often known as) can be enjoyed globally at anytime of the year, across anyone’s table.
Ingredients
-
Pastry:
-
175g plain flour
-
1 tbsp icing sugar
-
75g butter- chilled and cubed
-
1 egg yolk only
-
3 tbsp cold water- ice cold
-
Filling:
-
250g maple syrup
-
40g butter- melted
-
110g soft light brown sugar- or dark brown
-
1 tbsp rum- optional
-
250g pecan nut halves- roughly chopped + 16 whole for decoration
-
1 tsp vanilla bean paste/essence
Instructions
-
Prepare pastry: either by hand or using a food processor.
-
01 If making by hand, best to sieve the flour into a large bowl. Add the chopped, chilled butter and with two blunt sided knives chop the butter into the flour, finishing with the finger tips to create a mixture which resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the water to the egg yolk, mix well and tip into the flour and butter mixture. Stir well together to form a soft dough. Remove from the bowl and with light fingertips on a floured board, form into a smooth round ball. Either cover with cling film or place in a plastic bag and chill for 30 minutes (to rest) in the fridge.
-
02 If making the pastry using a food process. Add flour and butter, process to breadcrumbs. Add the egg and water and quickly pulse to form a dough. Do not over process. Turn out onto a lightly floured board and roll smooth. Chill as above.
-
Filling:
-
03 In a large bowl mix together the eggs, sugar, maple syrup, vanilla paste/essence and melted butter. Add rum (optional). Now add the chopped pecans, reserving a few for the decoration, and mix all the ingredients together well.
-
Prepare pastry crust:
-
04 Roll out the chilled pastry dough on a lightly floured board with a rolling pin, and line carefully the pie dish. Either leaving the sides plain or crimped (see images).
-
05 Give the pecan nut filling one more beat and then pour the syrupy nutty mixture into the pastry case. Attractively layer the few remaining whole pecans on the top, before placing in the oven to bake until golden brown and set.
-
06 Serve hot with lashing of cream or chilled decorated with whipped cream rosettes (see images).
Notes
No need to pre-bake or bake 'blind' the pastry case. Just make sure though that the oven is well pre-heated before cooking and as an additional tip, a baking tray has been added to heat up with the oven. This acts as an additional heat source for when the base of the tart goes into the oven and helps to form a well cooked crust to bottom of the tart. For a dark rich looking tart use dark brown sugar (decorated image) or for a lighter, caramelised tart use ordinary brown sugar (plain image). This recipe fits nicely a 28cm pie dish. It is possible to make this recipe with walnuts if you prefer but of course, it is not so traditionally festive.
