Vivienne’s blackcurrant tart

Blackcurrant tart

(Recipe created by Vivienne Roberts – a.k.a. “Mum” – in her kitchen at Valleyfield. While her official recipe doesn’t mention it, I reckon a dollop of cream on top doesn’t go astray either.)

Makes one shallow 12″ (~30cm) tarts, or one deep 9″ (~23cm) tart.

 

Pastry case

Ingredients

90g softened butter

¼ cup sugar

1 egg

1¼ cup plain flour

¼ cup self-raising flour

pinch of salt

Method

Pre-heat oven to 180°C.

Mix pastry ingredients thoroughly and roll out thinly to cover completely the base and sides of buttered flan tins, making sure there are no cracks in the pastry.

Cook for 15 minutes at 180°C and allow to cool.

Tart filling

Ingredients

250g blackcurrants (fresh or frozen)

½ cup of sugar

750mL water

20g gelatine

Method

Boil currants with sufficient of the 750mL water to just cover the fruit, for 3 minutes.

Remove and discard approx ¾ of the currants (think jam!) and any remaining stalks, keeping the liquid.

Dissolve gelatine in a small amount of the hot liquid, and then return this to the larger portion of hot liquid.

Add the sugar to the hot liquid, stirring to dissolve. Add enough of the remaining cold water to make a total of 750mL of liquid. Stir thoroughly and allow to cool in fridge.

When on the point of setting, stir again and pour into the pastry case and stand in the fridge to set.