Original Recipe: Edmonds

Ingredients

Pastry – Alternately, use 400g of bought sweet short pastry, thawed

• 125g butter, softened
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp baking powder
• pinch of salt
• 2 cups flour

Filling

• 115g butter, softened
• 55g icing sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla essence, or finely grated lemon zest
• 1 1/2 tsp gelatine
• 3 tbsp boiling water

Glacé Icing

Method

1. Make the pastry by creaming the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat well.
2. Sift the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture and combine to form a smooth dough. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead lightly. Wrap in greaseproof paper and chill for 15 minutes.
3. Preheat the oven to 180°C
4. Make the filling by creaming the butter and icing sugar until light and fluffy, then mix in the vanilla or lemon zest. Dissolve the gelatine in the boiling water and add a little at a time into the creamed mixture, beating vigorously. Set aside.
5. Roll out the pastry to 2mm thickness. Cut into rounds (I managed to get 24) using a 7 cm biscuit cutter (I used a drinking glass) and use them to line patty tins. Prick the bases with a fork.
6. Bake for 12 minutes or until cooked through, then place on a wire rack to cool.
7. Fill the cooled cases with the vanilla cream, level the tops and chill until the filling is firm.
8. Ice one half of each tart with white Glacé Icing, and ice the other half with the Chocolate Icing.

Alternative to rolling the dough / shaping the tarts

Form into a cylinder about 6cm in diameter and chill for 15 minutes to firm up. Slice the chilled dough into 3mm thick rounds, and press evenly into shallow, well sprayed (or greased), patty tins.

Credit – Alison Holst

Glacé Icing

Ingredients:

• 1 cup icing sugar
• 1 tsp butter
• 1/4 tsp vanilla essence
• boiling water

Method:

1. Make two bowls of icing for Neenish Tarts. One plain, and the other with a tablespoon or two of cocoa added.
2. Put icing sugar, butter, and vanilla essence in a bowl/jug. Carefully add enough boiling water to mix to the desired consistency. If icing becomes too liquid, mix in a little bit more icing sugar.

This article was provided by Ben Knowles – Editor @ The Upper Hutt Connection

23/02/24