Rick Stein has a simple yet impressive dessert recipe that looks sophisticated without the need to spend hours in the kitchen. The chef’s blueberry tart, or tart aux myrtilles, combines the delicious fruit with creamy egg custard and ground almonds. This recipe, shared by BBC Food, serves eight and goes great with tea or coffee.
Blueberry tart recipe
Ingredients
For the pastry
* 210g/71⁄4oz plain flour, plus extra for dusting
* pinch salt
* 100g/31⁄2oz butter, chilled and diced
* 40g/11⁄2oz caster sugar
* One free-range egg, beaten
* One tbsp iced water
For the filling
* 75g/23⁄4oz ground almonds
* 600g/1lb 5oz fresh or frozen blueberries, defrosted
* 150ml/5fl oz double cream
* 75g/23⁄4oz icing sugar, sifted
* Two free-range eggs, beaten
* One tsp vanilla extract
* single cream or crème fraîche, to serve
Instructions
To prepare the pastry, combine the flour, salt, and butter in a food processor and pulse until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Transfer to a bowl, mix in the sugar, and then gently incorporate the egg. Add just enough water to bring the mixture together and knead it into a smooth, non-sticky dough. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 20 minutes.
Roll out the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface to a circle roughly 28cm/11in in diameter. Line a 25cm/10in loose-bottomed tart tin with the dough, pricking the base all over with a fork. Chill in the refrigerator for 20–30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 190C/170C Fan/Gas 5. Line the pastry shell with crumpled parchment paper and fill with baking beans. Bake for approximately 10 minutes, then remove the paper and beans and bake for an additional three to four minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4.
For the filling, sprinkle ground almonds over the pastry shell, add the blueberries, and bake for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare a custard by combining the double cream, icing sugar, eggs, and vanilla in a bowl. Pour this mixture over the blueberries and bake for another 20–30 minutes, or until the filling is set and golden. Allow the tart to cool in the tin on a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature with cream or crème fraîche.
