Wild Plum Tart

This is a tart I will likely never forget. Will I remember the shortbread-like crust which crumbled beneath my fork with every bite? Perhaps. Will I reminisce about the soft silky filling that tasted of barely sweetened fragrant plums? Possibly. Will I recall how perfectly the flavors mingled together with homemade vanilla ice cream? Maybe.

Making the Crust

Making the Crust

Making the Wild Plum Tart

Making the Tart
Despite the delectable flavor and eye-pleasing presentation of this wild plum tart, what will keep it foremost in my memory is this:

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Yes, that is a second degree burn just beginning to blister, and yes it hurt like crazy! In fact I was so mad at myself for accidentally resting my forearm on the oven door that I hollered for about five minutes straight. Poor Mr. B didn’t know whether to help out or run for cover! (The dog ran for cover.)

I was particularly mad at myself because I have a long history of cooking scars. (In fact almost all of my scars are from cooking. Hmmm…) It began when I was about 11 and burned my wrist on the oven element while baking muffins. Then it continued when I was 13 with my first (and last) attempt at homemade tortillas, leaving scars on my other forearm. And most recently I learned that browning meat in hot oil while in the buff, is a very bad idea. (Why hasn’t anyone invented a bathrobe that doubles as an apron?) You would think after all of that I would have the foresight to wear mitts when placing a tart in the oven. My father always loves to say, “Stupidity is self-curing.” I’m beginning to wonder…

At times like this I can be a bit of a drama queen, and I woefully moaned to Mr. B “If this leaves a big scar, I’m going to have to get a tattoo to cover it up.” He takes my drama in stride and replied, “Yeah, you could get one of those cool dragon tattoos all up your arm!” That shut me up. Good grief. What is it with men and dragon tattoos? (No Mom, I’m not considering it, put the phone down!)

So back to the wild plum tart. After the drama subsided and my arm was bandaged up we sat down to eat the tart. It was incredible. In fact Mr. B looked over at me and tentatively said, “This is so good, it was almost worth it.” Despite my bandaged state, I had to agree.

Wild Plum Tart

Wild Plum Tart (Printable Recipe)
Modified from the charming blog, The Italian Dish who adapted a recipe from the book “Chez Panisse Fruit”
Serves 10

This tart begs to be served with vanilla ice cream. My plums were on the tart side and without ice cream to add a touch of sweetness the flavor would simply be incomplete!

Pâte Sucrée (The tart shell)

Ingredients:

1 stick quality butter, room temperature (I used

Plugra)
1/3 cup Sugar
1/4 tsp. Vanilla extract
1 Egg yolk
1 1/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour

Directions:

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar. Add in the vanilla and egg yolk and mix until the ingredients are well combined. Next add in the flour and continue to mix until no dry bits remain. Scrape the ball of dough out of the bowl and onto a sheet of plastic wrap. Gently press the dough into a flat disk, about 4″ across, and wrap it completely with the plastic wrap. Place the dough in the fridge for several hours or overnight until it is firm.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Remove the dough from the fridge and let warm up for about 5-10 minutes until it is just barely pliable. (If the dough is too stiff to roll out and is just crumbling, let it sit for a few more minutes to warm up slightly.) Lightly flour both sides of the dough and place it between two pieces of parchment paper or two silpats. Use a rolling pin to gently roll the dough into a large 12 inch circle. Place the dough (still sandwiched between the parchment) in the fridge for 10 minutes to firm up again.

Gently peel the top sheet of parchment off of the dough. Ready a 10″ tart pan, and then invert the dough into the pan. Remove the remaining sheet of parchment and gently press the dough down into the pan. Pinch off any dough that hangs over the edges of the tart pan, and use it to patch any tears. Next place the tart pan in the freezer for about 10 minutes to firm up again before baking. (If you don’t do this the dough will shrink in the pan and you will be sorry!)

Take the tart pan straight from the freezer and place it in the center of the oven. Bake for 15 minutes or until the tart shell is slightly golden. Check on the tart shell about halfway through baking and if you notice any bubbles, use the back of a spoon to press them down. Transfer the tart to a rack and let it cool completely before filling.

Wild Plum Filling

Ingredients:

15-20 wild plums (Wild plums are small. Reduce this to 8-10 if you are using regular plums!)
1 prebaked 10-inch pâte sucrée tart shell (recipe above)
1 stick salted butter (again I used Plugra)
Juice of 1 lemon
2 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons plum brandy, grappa or kirsch (or just plain brandy if you have nothing else)
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 Tablespoons flour
2 Tablespoons heavy cream (I used whole milk because we were out of cream)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Cut the plums in half, remove the pits, and slice into 1/2 inch wedges. As you cut the plums, arrange the wedges in concentric circles in the prebaked tart shell. This will help you determine exactly how many plums are needed to fill the tart.

Place a small saucepan over low heat. Add the stick of butter and let it melt and bubble. Keeping an eye on it so it doesn’t burn, continue to cook the butter, giving the pan an occasional swirl, until it has turned a toasty light brown color. Immediately take the pan off the heat and add in the lemon juice to stop the cooking. Set the mixture aside to cool slightly.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the eggs and sugar until it forms a mixture that drops thickly from the beaters (about 5 minutes of mixing). Add the browned butter, brandy, vanilla, flour, and cream into the bowl. Gently beat the mixture until it is just combined (about 1 minute).

Pour the batter over the top of the plums, jiggling the tart pan gently to evenly distribute the batter. Cover the edge of the tart crust with a pie crust shield or a ring of foil (careful I scorched myself adjusting the foil in the oven!). Place the tart in the top third of the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes, until the top is a golden brown. Transfer the tart to a rack and remove the foil or pie shield. Let the tart cool for 15-30 minutes and then remove the outer tart ring (if the ring sticks in places, gently insert the tip of a knife between the ring and the crust to remove it). Serve the tart warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream.

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