If you’re a beginner and decide to try your hand at baking, the very first thing you should try is the shortcrust jam tart.
It’s an easy, non-yeasted dough that doesn’t hide any tricks.
The trick for a perfect tart is simply a shortcrust pastry made to perfection and a very good-quality jam.
As for the jam, the flavor choice is up to you; for quality, artisan jarred jams are definitely preferable to industrial ones.
For the pastry I will teach you all the tricks my mother Titti passed down to me to achieve a foolproof result.
Make it for the whole family: it’s great as an after-dinner dessert, for breakfast, for an afternoon snack, or for the kids to take to school as an alternative to the usual packaged snacks.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Budget
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Cooking time: 40 Minutes
- Portions: about 8 slices
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 2 1/3 cups All-purpose flour (about 300 g / 10.6 oz)
- 7 oz Butter (about 200 g — roughly 1 3/4 sticks or 14 tbsp)
- 1/2 cup Granulated sugar (about 100 g / 3.5 oz)
- 1 Egg
- 1 packet Vanillin (vanilla powder)
Preparation
To make the shortcrust pastry you can proceed either by mixing by hand or with a stand mixer.
Start by putting the flour, the vanillin, a pinch of salt and the butter into the stand mixer (or in a bowl if you’re mixing by hand). The butter should be just removed from the refrigerator and therefore still cold. If you’re using a stand mixer, the paddle attachment is recommended to avoid warming the dough too much. Work quickly until the mixture looks crumbly and sandy.
Add the sugar and immediately after the egg. Knead quickly until you obtain a compact and elastic dough. Attention: do not “warm” the dough too much, otherwise it will become sticky. If this happens, do not add flour; simply chill the dough in the refrigerator.
Form the dough into a flat disk (rather than a ball, as it will be easier to roll out later). Wrap the disk in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Remove the shortcrust pastry disk from the fridge and take about two-thirds (2/3) of the dough. Roll it out on a lightly floured surface with a rolling pin until it reaches a thickness of about 1/4 in (≈0.2 in).
Place the rolled pastry into a tart pan with a diameter of about 8.7–9.5 in. Trim the excess dough that hangs over the edge by rolling the pin across the rim of the pan. At this point, pour the jam into the shell and spread it evenly over the dough.
Take the remaining shortcrust pastry and make the classic tart lattice. You can proceed in two ways:
Form thin cylinders by hand (“breadstick-like”) and then cross them over the tart.
Or roll out the remaining pastry and cut it into strips with a knife or pastry wheel to place them crossed over the tart.Bake in a preheated, conventional (non-fan) oven at 356°F for about 40 minutes. The tart is ready when the shortcrust pastry is golden.
After the required time, remove the tart from the oven and let it cool completely before serving.
Notes
You can prepare the tart using a single pan or use small single-portion tart pans to make little tarts for breakfast or snacks for the family. In that case, obviously baking times are reduced: for single-portion tarts about 20 minutes should be enough. As always, baking depends on the oven, so check the pastry after 15–18 minutes. It should be slightly golden on the surface. I didn’t specify a particular jam flavor on purpose because any flavor works—the important thing is that it’s your favorite!
