Coconut Butter Tarts
BUTTER TARTS
Ingredients for the crust:
2 and a half cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 cup salted butter..chilled,cut into cubes
1/4 cup plus a few tablespoons ice water
Method:
In a food processor, add the flour, salt, sugar and mix for a minute.
Next add the cold butter(make sure the butter is very cold) all around the flour and turn the processor on and mix for a few seconds.
Next add the ice cold water but begin with a 1/4 cup and mix. Once the dough starts to clump up, stop the mixer and check the dough to see if it sticks together like dough when you squeeze it, if yes then don’t add any more water. If no, then add a tablespoon of water and mix then test again. I ended up adding 1/4 cup plus 1 tbsp of the ice cold water.
The dough should not look like a solid dough like mahambri or chapati dough, it should be crumbly and flaky.
Now take the dough and gather it into a ball, divide the ball into two.
Press the balls flat into discs. Wrap each disc in a plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 30 to 45 minutes.
Then take out one of the discs from the fridge, roll it out on a floured surface, turning and rolling into a circle until the disk is flat and thin. Now take a cookie cutter that is bigger than the cupcake pan hole and cut the rolled out disc into 12 tart circles. Join up any remaining dough and place it in the fridge to use for something else. Now place the cut tart circles into the cupcake pan holes and press the circle down the pan and along the sides.
Cover the cupcake pan with a plastic wrap and place it in the fridge for another half an hour, so the dough can be firm.
You can use the remaining disc and dough for another day or another recipe.
For the filling: (enough for 12 tarts)
1/3 cup butter..at room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla sugar
1/4 cup cream
Method:
In a mixer, beat the butter, sugar until creamy and smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and then the vanilla sugar. Stir in the cream. If using chocolate chips, desiccated coconut or raisins, place a teaspoonful in the bottom of each tart shell and then fill the unbaked tart shells with the filling. Bake at 375 degrees for about 15 – 20 minutes or until the pastry has nicely browned and the filling is puffed and set. Remove from oven and let them cool. Serve at room temperature.
Enjoy!!
