Prune and Armagnac tarts
- Preparation and cooking time
- Total time
- Easy
- makes 12
Ingredients
- 12 (such as Agen) ready-to-eat pitted prunes
- or other brandy 3 tbsp Armagnac
- y 500g ready-made puff pastr
- 2 free-range eggs, plus 2 yolks
- 50g caster sugar
- ½ vanilla pod, split lengthways and seeds scraped out
- 300 ml pot single cream
- icing sugar
Method
- STEP 1
Put the prunes in a bowl and pour over the armagnac. Leave to steep for 2-3 hours.
- STEP 2
Heat the oven to 220c/fan 200c/gas 7. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pastry into a rectangle 45 × 35cm. Use a cutter to cut the pastry into 12 × 10cm rounds. Press the rounds firmly into a deep 12-hole cake or muffin tin.
- STEP 3
Put small pieces of crumpled baking parchment inside each pastry case and fill with ceramic baking beans, making sure each mould is well packed (dried chickpeas also work well). Bake for 22-25 minutes until the edges are puffed up and golden. Remove the baking beans and parchment. Press down any risen centres and set aside without removing from the tins. Reduce the oven temperature to 180c/fan 160c/gas 4.
- STEP 4
Lightly whisk the eggs, yolks, 50g of the sugar and the vanilla seeds. Stir in the cream and pour into a jug.
- STEP 5
Drain the prunes. Half fill each tartlet with vanilla cream, add a prune, then pour more vanilla cream around it to fill each pastry case. Return to the oven and cook for 15 minutes or until the custard is set on the outside – it should still wobble in the centre but will continue to cook when removed from the oven. Set aside to cool.
- STEP 6
Dust with icing sugar before going over with the blowtorch until caramelised.
