It is 28ºC here in the Netherlands today and I just ate ice cream for lunch. We are all boiling, even indoors. Don’t feel like doing very much today … but R. wanted a tub of Bourbon Vanilla ice cream so I cycled to the store. Even though it was scorching outside I welcomed the opportunity to hang out in the supermarket where it is guaranteed to be air conditioned. I took my time browsing each and every aisle, although R. would say I do this on a daily basis regardless of the temperatures outside anyway.
Being a Sunday, the store wasn’t very crowded. Blissssss! There will be no jumping out of the way of overly filled trolleys today, or waiting patiently for lil ‘ol granny to decide if she wants a box of six eggs or twelve so that I might pick up a carton myself. No, today it was all serenity and calmness in there; even the checkout line seemed manageable. I picked up my favourite apple turnovers (… three of) and a gorgeous fresh ciabatta loaf. It smelt divine. Passing by the fresh fruit section I was again drawn to the chill cabinets overflowing with punnets of summer berries, citruses and tropical fruit. I gathered some limes with the hope of making a Thai curry, but then I remembered the heat outside. I was about to put the limes back when I thought of a few things at once: fruit cocktail, mojitoes and lemon curd. This thought lasted for just a second but it was enough … I had made up my mind. So back into my basket the limes went, along with a pack of passionfruits.
As you may have noticed, this summer I have been on a sort of tart fetish. I tell R. it’s because I am justifying the purchase of my new tart tins. He said he didn’t think I should buy any more …. I bought them anyway. I bought them with the promise of making him more yummy treats; the only problem with that promise is he doesn’t like tarts. Oh well, I tried … *stuffs tart tins into shopping bag*.
To make a curd you really only need four or five ingredients tops. Eggs are used to thicken and set the mixture into a delicious, velvety yellow curd. Curds are like custards, except they do not contain any milk or cream. They do contain butter tho. Cold chunks of butter are added at the end to further thicken the curd and to give it a lusciously rich consistency.
Ingredients:
- 4 passionfruits
- 2 limes
- zest of both limes
- 60 g butter, cold
- 120g castor sugar
- 3 whole eggs
– Zest both limes and extract all the juice. Slice passionfruits and remove all the pulp. Set everything aside.
– In a saucepan, combine all the eggs + sugar and whisk until everything turns pale. Now add the lime juice and passionfruit pulp.
– Place the pan on low heat, stirring constantly until mixture thickens.
– When it thickens and coats the back of a spoon, remove from heat and immediately add in the cold butter. Whisk to combine as quick as you can to avoid the butter splitting.
– Once everything is emulsified, add in the lime zest. Stir and then chill everything in the fridge until it sets. It won’t thicken like jam, but thick enough to not seep out of a tart.
All my sweet pastry doughs are one and the same. I like this version because it is soft and supple, and doesn’t crack. It also can be used in two ways. Sometimes I simply rip off balls of the dough and smoosh it into a buttered tart tin and bake it blind. Other times I chill it in the fridge until it gets firm enough to roll out, then I cut out the desired size to line a bigger tin. Always line the pastry with a piece of baking paper and weigh it down with beans to keep it in shape. Once they are done baking, cool completely …. they will harden as they cool.
Pour the curd into each tart shell and then chill them again for up to four hours to set the filling. Before serving I like to top each one with coconut whipped cream for that extra tropical connection. I tend to leave the cream soft and a little runny. You can even garnish with toasted coconut flakes + lime zest.
Whipped Coconut Cream
- 200 mls very cold heavy cream
- 4 tbsps icing sugar
- 60 mls coconut cream (or 1 tsp coconut extract)
And there you have it, one super tangy cold dessert to help cool you down when the temperature soars. I imgine these would go down verrrrrrrrry well with a pitcher of (Long Island) ice tea. Oh man, what I wouldn’t give to have some right now. However, cycling to the bar (we don’t own a car) in this heat is an instant turn off. My mantra this summer is ‘Drink More Water’ anyway … trying to get into the habit of drinking more water instead of artificially flavoured drinks. Be that as it may, I still could do with a Long Island. *grumble grumble*.
Anyway, hit up this recipe and have yourself a wonderful summer ahead. Stay safe, stay cool and don’t bake yourself too much … my public service message for the month. HA!
~ Enjoy ~
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