It’s Valentine’s Day and while I do think that it is a commercial “holiday”, it is a good excuse to bake something so I went for this super-raspberry, super-red, super-delicious Raspberry Curd Tart. It’s really delicious and actually quite easy to make. It can be done all in one day, or you can make the filling up to 3 days in advance and the crust a day in advance, in case you don’t want to be pressed for time.
Ingredients
for the crust
10 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
5 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
for the filling
16 ounces fresh or frozen raspberries
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 whole eggs
3 egg yolks
8 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
for the topping
2 cups fresh raspberries
Fresh mint (to garnish, optional)
You will also need a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom.
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350F. Melt the butter is a small saucepan or microwave. While the butter is melting, whisk the flour, sugar, and salt together in a bowl. Add melted butter while it is still very warm and stir with a silicone spatula or wooden spoon until a dough forms and there are no visible bits of flour left.
Using your hands, press two-thirds of dough into the bottom of 9- inch tart pan with removable bottom. Press remaining dough into fluted sides of the pan. Press and smooth dough with your hands to even thickness. Chill for 15 minutes in the refrigerator.
Place pan on a wire rack set in a rimmed baking sheet and bake on the middle rack, until crust is deep golden brown and firm to touch, 25-30 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking. Set it aside until it is ready to fill with the raspberry curd filling. If making one day in advance, allow it to cool completely and then cover with a plastic wrap.
To make the filling, place the raspberries, 1/4 cup of sugar and 2 tablespoons of water in a 3-quart non-reactive saucepan. Cook the raspberries over medium heat until they start to break down. Use a potato masker to completely break down the berries Strain the berries through a fine mesh strainer to remove the seeds. Allow the raspberries to cool to room temperature. Add the lemon juice and remaining 1/4 cup of sugar and taste the mixture. If it is still a little tart add additional sugar 2 tablespoons at time until desired sweetness is reached. Place the raspberry puree back in the 3-quart saucepan. Rinse and dry the bowl and place it next to the stove with a medium-coarse strainer. Add the whole eggs and egg yolks to the raspberry-lemon mixture and whisk to combine. Cook the curd over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with silicone spatula or metal whisk, until the mixture is thickened and registers 180F in multiple spots, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and whisk in butter, 2 tablespoons at a time until incorporated. Strain curd through the medium-coarse strainer into the bowl to remove any solids. If making the curd one day in advance, press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of curd and refrigerate until ready to use. (Curd can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.)
Immediately scrape the raspberry curd into the tart crust and bake in a 350F oven until the curd is firm to the touch, 15-17 minutes. If making the ingredients one day in advance, add 2-3 minutes to the baking time of the tart. This additional time is needed because the curd will be cold and will need additional time to come to temperature. Remove the tart from the oven and allow it to completely cool before decorating with fresh berries. If serving the tart the next day, refrigerate the tart, remove from the refrigerator and decorate with the fresh berries and mint.
