I'm Moving....

I'm switching over to my own domain at www.piefinger.net but the site is currently under construction. The new and improved version should be up in the next few days!

Handy New Tool

I got this excellent dough mat this weekend and highly recommend that you own one too if you make a lot of pastry. It's nonstick, has a weight and measure conversion chart, and clearly marks your goal size for rolling out everything from a wee six inch tart to a giant 11 inch pie.

I also treated myself to a new book, Pastry Cook by Catherine Atkinson. It was a cheap treat and has pretty much already paid for itself with its many technique focused photos and its recipe for raspberry creme brulee tart, which I made for my brother's wedding. It got eaten before I could take a picture but it was something like this:
(Picture from Gourmet.com)

Super rich and sturdy enough to survive 2.5 hours in the car, this tart was pretty easy to put together and could easily work with a variety of fruits.

Raspberry Creme Brulee Tart from Pastry Cook - serves 10 to 12 in a 9 inch tart pan
For the crust
2 cups all purpose flour
1 pinch coarse kosher salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter
1 large egg yolk (reserve egg white)
Zest of a large orange

For the filling
1 1/2 cups whole fresh raspberries
2 cups heavy whipping cream
2 1/2 tsp vanilla extract or one whole vanilla bean, scraped
2 Tbsp. caster sugar
1 whole egg
3 large egg yolks
6 Tbsp. powdered sugar

Instructions:
Blend in a food processor or with a pastry blender, the flour salt and butter until it looks like breadcrumbs. In a separate bowl, combine egg yolk and orange zest, add to flour mixture and knead until a soft dough forms. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least 30 minutes.

While the dough is chilling, preheat oven to 400 and put a baking sheet in the oven while pre-heating. Bring heavy cream and vanilla to warm in a small heavy saucepan. Whisk egg yolks, whole egg, and sugar together in a small jug until light. Pour warmed cream into the egg and sugar combination and whisk to make a custard.

Turn out dough onto lightly floured surface (or dough mat!) and roll out to fit a 9 inch tart pan with releasable bottom. Prick the bottom of the tart shell and place on hot baking sheet in the oven for about 10 minutes. Remove from oven and brush shell with reserved egg white. Return shell to oven for another 3-4 minutes. Remove pre-baked shell and reduce heat to 325.

Scatter fresh raspberries evenly over the bottom of the pre-baked shell. Slowly pour custard over top and bake on the baking sheet for 15-17 minutes or until very lightly set. Cool completely and then chill for four hours or overnight.

To form bruleed crust before serving, sprinkle cold surface of tart with powdered sugar and place under broiler on low for just under five minutes. Obviously, a brulee torch works too. That will be my next handy new tool purchase.