Recipe: Plum and Blueberry Tart with White Chocolate Crumble

Equipment

• Tart Tin
• Saucepan
• Mixing Bowl
• Rolling Pin
• Ceramic Pie Weights or Stainless Steel Chainmail
• Pastry Brush
• Perforated Spoon or Skimmer
• Cake Server

Ingredients

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C fan.
2. Begin by rolling out the tart crust. Remove from the fridge and roll it out on a lightly floured surface. You’ll need to roll it at least an inch and a half larger than your tart tin, and it should be roughly the thickness of a pound coin (5mm). Carefully place the dough into the tart case and press the dough into the corners of the tin using either a rolled up piece of clingfilm or any excess dough, leaving at least 1cm excess dough along the edge of the tin. Make sure that the dough is pushed right into the corners firmly, as any air pockets may cause the dough to collapse. Also make sure that there are no cracks in the case, as that will cause the filling to leak.
3. Once the case has been lined, roll the rolling pin firmly over the tartcase to trim off any excess pastry. Using a fork, lightly prick the base of the tart case in several spots, being careful not to go all the way through the dough. Chill the tart shell for at least 30 minutes before blind baking.
4. To blind bake, line the inside of the tart with parchment paper and fill with baking beans or stainless steel chainmail. Bake tart case for 14–18 minutes. Remove the parchment with the baking beans or stainless steel chainmail and brush the inside of the tart with the egg wash. Cook for another minute before removing from the oven. Let it cool to room temperature on a wire rack. The egg wash will help to seal any cracks that may have formed whilst cooking.
5. As the tart shell cools, make the filling. Liberally mix all the remaining filling ingredients together in a mixing bowl, then place in a large saucepan or pot. Cook over a medium-high heat, gently stirring from time to time. Bring to a boil before turning the heat down to a low simmer. Cook for another 2 minutes, stirring to make sure the sugar doesn’t catch on the bottom and the cornflour doesn’t clump. Turn off the heat and allow the filling to cool to room temperature before discarding the cinnamon stick, bayleaf, rosemary and vanilla pod.
6. Finally, make the crumble topping. Increase the oven temperature to 180°C fan. Combine all your crumble ingredients except the white chocolate. Rub the butter into the flour and sugar until it resembles fine sand. Next, add the white chocolate and mix it into the crumble.
7. Begin to assemble your tart. Using a perforated spoon, add roughly 500g of the filling into the tart shell. It needs to be roughly 5mm below the edge of the tart walls. (Reserve any leftover liquid for drizzling over the tart before serving.) Next, liberally top the filling with the crumble topping, making sure all of the filling has been covered. Place in the centre of the oven and bake for roughly 15 minutes, or until the crumble and white chocolate has taken a deep, golden hue.
8. Remove from the oven and leave to cool before slicing and serving with clotted cream and a drizzle of any left over filling. Alternatively, serve warm, fresh out of the oven, alongside custard.