Ingredients
| 2 x 5cm thin shards of cassia or cinnamon | |
| ½ teaspoon whole cloves | |
| 1 teaspoon whole fennel seeds | |
| 1 teaspoon whole star anise (around two stars) | |
| 1 teaspoon black peppercorns | |
| 175g plain flour | |
| 50g icing sugar | |
| 235g cold butter, cubed (divided into 85g for the pastry and 150g for the filling) | |
| 9 free-range eggs (6 yolks and 3 whole eggs; I use size 7s) | |
| 2 cups caster sugar | |
| 225ml lemon juice (approx 6-8 medium Meyer lemons) | |
| zest of 5 medium Meyer lemons | |
| 1 mandarin, thinly sliced | |
| 1 lime, thinly sliced | |
| 1 small lemon, thinly sliced | |
| ½ blood orange, thinly sliced | |
| 300ml fresh cream | |
| 1 tablespoon icing sugar | |
| 200g mascarpone |
In the cooler months when our citrus trees are heaving under the weight of fruit, this tart is my go-to dessert when we host guests. The creamy, yellow custard has a fresh flavour punch full of tangy citrus zest that tidies up what sometimes can be an overly sweet tart when encased in a plain sugary crust. So, I’ve packed some spicy autumn flavour into the sweet pastry here with my own five-spice blend using black peppercorns rather than the usual Sichuan which lessens the perfume flavour that I sometimes find a little overwhelming. I also used cassia bark for its more rugged earthy cinnamon spice notes.
Instructions
| 1. | Heat a dry, heavy-bottomed, non-stick or well-seasoned frying pan until hot. Put the spices into the pan and move them around until they are fragrant and lightly toasted. |
| 2. | Remove from the heat and grind together to a fine powder in a coffee grinder or spice grinder. When cool, keep in an airtight container. |
| 3. | Lightly grease a 28cm fluted, loose-bottom tart tin. |
| 4. | For the pastry, pulse 2 teaspoons of five-spice mix, the flour, icing sugar and 85g of the butter in a food processor until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. |
| 5. | Add two of the egg yolks and pulse again until combined. |
| 6. | On a piece of baking paper roll out the pastry dough into a rough disc and lay into the tin. Using your fingers, press the mixture into the sides and base until it is evenly covered. |
| 7. | Chill the pastry case in the fridge while you prepare the lemon filling. |
| 8. | Put one cup of the caster sugar, the remaining 4 egg yolks and 3 whole eggs, lemon juice and zest in a medium saucepan over a low heat. |
| 9. | Gently whisk to break up the eggs and dissolve the sugar. Add 75g butter and continue to whisk as the eggs begin to gently cook, about 10-12 minutes. |
| 10. | Add the remaining butter and continue to whisk until the mixture becomes very thick. You must keep whisking throughout cooking to prevent your mixture curdling. |
| 11. | Remove from heat and set aside on a cold surface to cool. |
| 12. | Preheat the oven to 170℃ fanbake. |
| 13. | Line your chilled pastry case with paper, fill with baking beans or rice and bake blind for around 30 minutes or until golden on the edges. |
| 14. | Remove the tart case from oven and allow to cool. |
| 15. | Whisk the lemon filling until smooth and pour into the tart case. |
| 16. | Increase the oven heat to 230℃ and bake the filled tart for around 5-10 minutes to set the custard. It will become slightly freckled with brown spots when the filling is set with a slight wobble. Allow to cool. |
| 17. | Heat the remaining 1 cup of caster sugar with one cup of water in a deep-sided frying pan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. |
| 18. | Simmer for 5-7 minutes until the mixture becomes syrupy, then poach the citrus slices in batches for around 10 minutes, turning once. |
| 19. | Leave the blood orange until last so it doesn’t tint your other slices pink. Cool on a lined baking tray. |
| 20. | For the mascarpone cream, add the fresh cream and icing sugar to a large mixer bowl and whip on high speed until soft peaks form. |
| 21. | Add the mascarpone and whip until it reaches stiff peaks. Keep refrigerated. |
| 22. | Decorate the cake with the candied citrus slices and serve with the mascarpone cream. |
Recipes, food styling & photography Fiona Hugues
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