Cantonese Egg Tarts

Recipe: Christine's Recipes / Source: A Swoonful of Sugar
Makes about 14 - 16 egg tarts (3-inch Tart Tin or about 20 if using disposable foil tart liners)

For the Crust:

125g butter

50g icing sugar (original recipe 55g)

1 egg, whisked

a dash vanilla extract

225g plain flour

pinch of salt

Method:

Place butter at room temperature until softened.  Cream the butter and sugar with an electric mixer over medium speed until the mixture is smooth, fluffy and light in colour.

Add in whisked egg, half at a time, beat over low speed (at this point, the mixture turned very lumpy and is not wrong but it turned out fine so don't worry).  Add vanilla extract, mix well.

Sift in the flour in two batches, add the pinch of salt, scraping down the sides of the bowl between additions with a spatula and make sure all ingredients combine well.  Knead into dough.

Roll out the dough to a 1/2 cm thickness.  Cut dough with a cookie cutter that is just a bit smaller than your tart tin in size. Line dough in the middle of tart tins, one by one.  Lightly press the dough with your thumbs, starting from the bottom then up to the sides.

While pressing the dough, turn the tart tin clockwise/anti-clockwise in order to make an even tart shell.

Trim away any excess dough.

Preheat oven to 200C.  Make egg custard.

Position rack in lower third of oven.  Bake custard filled tarts for 10 to 15 minutes until the edges are lightly brown.

Lower the heat to 180C.  Keep an eye on them.  Once you see the custard being puffed up a bit, pull the oven door open about 2 to 3 inches.  Bake for another 10 to 15 minutes until the custard is cooked through.

Just insert a toothpick into the custard.  If it stands on its own, and crust is slightly browned, it's done.

For the Egg Custard:
3 eggs
55g caster sugar (original 110g)
225g hot water
85g evaporated milk ( i used low fat fresh milk )
1/2 ts vanilla extract

Method:
Add sugar into hot water, mix until completely dissolved.
Whisk egg with evaporated milk.  Pour in sugar water.  Mix well.
Sift egg mixture to get rid of any foam into a tea port.
Carefully pour egg mixture into each tart shell.