Post by ambercat on Apr 25, 2023 19:51:23 GMT
A little background follows, if you will indulge me.
The Mr and I recently watched Babylon Berlin on Netflix. The series is taken from a collection of murder mysteries set in 1920's Berlin, through the 30's and 40's, penned by German author Volcker Kutscher, ably translated by Niall Sellar. We have now read all that are available in translation.
A recurring character in the books has a fondness for gooseberry tart. Slices of the delicacy are found on every tray of cakes which inevitably find their way into his office. Our curiosity was piqued and we went in search of more information.
So, what is gooseberry tart? Gooseberries and sugar piled in a shortcrust pastry crust and partially baked before adding a beaten custard and baking just long enough to set the custard. BTW, gooseberries are naturally tart. Very tart. We found several recipes from different European cuisines which combine the little green berries with rhubarb. Tart and tart in the tart. (sorry)
So, we made one yesterday and it was indeed a tart little tart. We had to cheat with canned gooseberries. On tasting them, we agreed some sugar and vanilla couldn't hurt. We blind baked the crust, poured in the enhanced berries, and poured a thick custard over the berries. Baked until the custard was set and the crust was golden brown.
The tart needed the whipped cream which was liberally slathered over it. Probably will never be my new show-off dessert for company, but if asked for one, I could produce one.
The Mr says the slice he ate after lunch today was improved over last night. Smoother, mellower flavor, he says. Now I have to go get a slice and see if we concur.
EDIT: I had a slice of the tart. It had a lot less pucker power today and had a mellower custard flavor to it. The crust, one of my better ones of late, even survived overnight in the fridge moderately well.
We had the tart last night for dessert after a dinner of chicken schnitzel and fried potatoes with onions.
