Pecan Tarts with Muscovado Cream
It’s officially comfort food season, and I don’t know what’s more comforting than a gooey pecan tart with a little mountain of soft muscovado whipped ganache on top.
The sweet pastry is crisp and buttery, the lightly toasted pecans are crunchy with a deep nutty flavour, and the muscovado cream is soft and sweet with notes of a deep caramel.
One thing I want from a pecan tart is for the middle to be just set. I need the filling not to be too nut heavy so you still have a bit of goo in the middle. The filling is made up of eggs, sugar and cornflour which is then tempered with warm golden syrup & butter before adding in a good pinch of flaky salt.
I originally wanted to pipe a big bulb of the muscovado whipped ganache on top but realised I had run out of piping bags. So I went for this cone style instead, which I actually loved doing.
To finish they just need a few pieces of toasted pecans and a few flecks of gold leaf to bring them to life.
Ingredients - makes 6 individual 8cm tarts
Please note that the sweet paste recipe makes enough for 12 tarts when you re-roll every bit of it. You can make less, however 1 recipe uses one egg, so I just make a full recipe and keep any leftover pastry in the freezer for another time.
Sweet Paste:
130g unsalted butter, room temp
80g icing sugar, sieved
50g eggs
240g strong flour
1/2 tsp salt
Pecan Filling:
90g pecans, roughly chopped
3 eggs
40g caster sugar
6g cornflour
250g golden syrup
50g unsalted butter
a good pinch of flaky salt
Muscovado Cream:
300ml double cream
100ml single cream, cold
30g dark muscovado sugar
70g good-quality white chocolate
pinch of flaky salt
toasted pecans and gold leaf, to garnish
Method
Day One:
For the sweet pastry; lightly cream the soft butter and icing sugar together until combined. Add in the eggs and mix. Lastly, add in the flour and salt. Mix to combine, taking care not to overwork the pastry. Wrap the pastry in clingfilm, pat it into a rough square and refrigerate overnight.
For the muscovado whipped ganache, place the double cream and muscovado sugar in a saucepan over low heat and whisk to combine. In a jug, break up the white chocolate. Once the cream comes to a simmer, remove from the heat and pour over the white chocolate. Leave to sit for a few minutes before whisking together. Once all the chocolate has melted and emulsified with the cream, add in the salt and the cold single cream. Whisk together, scraping down the sides, until completely combined. If you have a hand blender, you can blend the ganache to ensure it is smooth and emulsified. Place clingfilm on the surface of the cream and refrigerate overnight.
Day Two:
Grease six 8cm tart rings and set them on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Take the pastry from the fridge and roll out onto a lightly floured worktop to approx. 2.5mm thick. Cut out six discs which are a few cm bigger than the rings, re-rolling the scrap pastry as needed. Line each tart ring by laying a pastry disc on top and gently easing it down into the inner sides of the prepared ring. Once the pastry is fully pushed into the corners, run a sharp knife around the top edge to remove any excess pastry. Place the lined tarts on your prepared baking tray. Place the tray into the freezer for 1 hour.
Pre-heat the oven to 160°C. Take 6 cupcake liners and flatten them out. Push one inside each of the lined tarts and fill with baking beans or rice. Bake for 15 minutes before rotating the tray and baking for another 10-15 minutes. The tarts should be golden. Leave them to cool for 10 minutes before removing both the baking beans and cupcake liners. Turn the oven down to 140°C.
For the pecan filling; place the golden syrup and butter into a saucepan over low heat until melted. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar and eggs. In a separate bowl, add the cornflour and a little of the egg mixture. Whisk together until no cornflour lumps remain and add it back into the rest of the egg mixture. Gradually pour the melted golden syrup mixture into the eggs while whisking. Add a good pinch of flaky salt before whisking everything to ensure it is combined well.
Divide the chopped pecans equally into the baked tart shells, still in their rings. Pour the pecan filling over the top until each tart is full. Bake for 15 minutes before rotating the tray and baking for a further 10 minutes. The filling should be very slightly puffed. Leave to cool completely before removing the rings.
Once the tarts are completely cooled, you can finish them! Whisk the muscovado whipped ganache until it reaches medium soft peaks. It should be able to hold its shape but don’t take it too far or it will become grainy. Divide the cream between the six tarts by scooping it on top (I like to use a spring loaded ice cream scoop for this.) Using a small palette knife, shape the cream into a cone. Garnish with broken pieces of toasted pecan and gold leaf.
These are best eaten the day they’re made but will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days. The pastry will soften a little in the fridge.