Shortcrust pastry for tarts is an essential base for anyone wanting to try their hand at making a jam tart, a simple pantry dessert that feels like home.
Pastry is one of the great classics of pastry making, easy to make and a fundamental base that encompasses tradition and versatility. It’s perfect for crispy tarts, crumbly cookies and delicious tartlets.
This recipe is designed for those who want to make a soft yet crumbly shortcrust pastry, easy to roll out and capable of holding its shape when baked.
With a few hours of rest in the fridge, you’ll get an ideal base for holding homemade jams and marmalades; in just a few steps, you can create perfect tarts for the whole family.
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- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 3 Hours
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: for 19.4 oz of shortcrust pastry
- Cooking methods: Electric oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
- Energy 457.57 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 51.13 (g) of which sugars 18.89 (g)
- Proteins 6.80 (g)
- Fat 25.97 (g) of which saturated 16.04 (g)of which unsaturated 9.68 (g)
- Fibers 1.02 (g)
- Sodium 78.43 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 100 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/3 lbs butter
- 3 oz egg yolks
- 1/2 tsp baking powder (optional)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp lemon zest (grated)
- 1/3 bean vanilla
Tools
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Pastry board
- 1 Scale
- Plastic wrap
Procedure
You can knead the shortcrust pastry by hand or with a stand mixer, choose the method you prefer.
Cut the butter into small cubes and let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes.
In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the powdered sugar, vanilla, grated lemon zest, salt, and butter cut into small cubes. Work the ingredients at medium speed until you get a well-blended soft mixture (don’t overwork the mixture, just mix until the ingredients are incorporated).
Add the egg yolks gradually, and once incorporated, add the flour sifted with baking powder.
Knead briefly to obtain a homogeneous dough.
Place the pastry on a slightly floured work surface and compact it. Form a low and wide block, wrap it with plastic wrap, and place it in the fridge to stabilize for 3 hours, or better yet, overnight.
The shortcrust pastry for tarts is ready.
Roll out the shortcrust pastry to a thickness of 1/8 inch and line your well-buttered tart pan, prick the bottom with a fork, and fill it with your preferred jam.
Bake the tart in a preheated static oven at 347°F for about 30 minutes. The baking time depends on your oven, the mold you use, and the humidity of the jam.
For a blind-baked pastry shell, make the pastry without baking powder, roll it out to a 1/8 inch thickness, line the perforated or classic mold, and bake at 338°F for 20-25 minutes.
Tips
Storage
The shortcrust pastry for tarts can be stored in the fridge well-covered for up to 15 days, but it’s important to use fresh, high-quality ingredients.
It can be frozen for 2 months.
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