The mini tarts with citrus cream are elegant and fragrant small desserts, perfect for ending a meal or accompanying an afternoon tea. The shortcrust pastry made with rice flour gives a delicate and crumbly texture, naturally gluten-free, which holds a velvety cream with a fresh and aromatic taste. The citrus fruits provide balance and lightness, making these mini tarts ideal for any season, but particularly appreciated in the less sunny months of the year when one craves refined and indulgent desserts. The citrus cream, more precisely the citrus curd, is a delicious English cream based on citrus juice and zest, egg yolks, and butter. Excellent for filling cookies, cakes, tarts, and spoon desserts like trifle. It is possible to make the recipe also lactose-free.
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- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 1 Hour
- Cooking methods: Stove, Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter, and Spring
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 80 g sugar
- 60 g vegetable oil
- 250 g gluten-free rice flour
- to taste vanilla
- 1.25 cups fruit juice (lemon, orange, mandarin, lime)
- 150 g sugar
- 2 eggs
- 3.5 oz butter
- 2.5 tbsp cornstarch (gluten-free)
Tools
- 1 Whisk
- 2 Bowls
- 1 Pot
- 1 Citrus Juicer
Steps
In a bowl, break the eggs, add the sugar and the seeds from the vanilla pod. Beat with a whisk to combine. Add the oil and mix well until you get a smooth cream.
Gradually add the flour and knead with your hands. If necessary, decrease or increase the flour, depending on absorption.
Form a dough ball.Choose the preferred variety of citrus fruits.
Wash the citrus fruits well and dry them with kitchen paper. Grate the zest into the glass bowl.
Squeeze the juice from all the chosen citrus fruits, strain it through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl and set aside.
To the citrus zest, add the eggs and sugar, then mix well with the whisk.
Dissolve the cornstarch in the citrus juice, then add it to the eggs and mix well.
Place a pot on the stove with a little water inside. Set the bowl on top and cook until the cream is thick and has reached a temperature of 180°F. Pour into sterilized jars and let cool.Roll out the rice shortcrust pastry with oil to a thickness of 1/8 inch. Cut out discs slightly larger than the mold. Line the molds.
Fill with citrus cream. Cut out discs the size of the mold. Cover the cream with the discs and press well to adhere. Decorate with the remaining shortcrust pastry.
Bake in a preheated static oven at 355°F for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool well before unmolding. Dust with powdered sugar after removing from the mold.
ATTENTION: Consult the Italian Celiac Association manual and read the ingredients carefully, to ensure they do not contain gluten contamination.
Advice
They can be stored in the refrigerator for 3 days.
Lemon or Orange: Use only one citrus for a more pronounced and linear flavor.
Indulgent version: Add a thin layer of citrus jam or dark chocolate between the shortcrust and cream.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
Is it possible to make this recipe lactose-free?
Yes, you can prepare the citrus curd with lactose-free or vegetable butter like margarine, but also coconut oil in the same amounts.
