Home-baked cheese tarts

Crime scene: The eatshopblogger's kitchen

Food in question: cheese tarts

I’m apologetic for bolting.

Exam period got really crazy.

So Julie’s back to reviewing great food.

Just a small gift for whoever’s reading this blog.

Cheese tart recipe!

Strictly speaking, it’s not mine. It’s by a fantabulous food blog The Weekend Chef which is, unfortunately, defunct. Still, do pop by there and give it some traffic, and grab some of the wonderful recipes there. That’s what the Internet is for, isn’t it?

Post-exam baking is therapeutic. Additional brownie points for all-time favourites, such as good old-fashioned cheese tarts (no pun intended). Here we go (makes 12 to 20, depending on the size of your tart tray):

Tartlet ingredients:

125 g unsalted butter

65 g fine sugar (sieved)

1 egg yolk

250 g plain flour (sieved)

1 tablespoon ice water

0.5 teaspoon vanilla essence

Procedure:

1. In a mixing bowl, mix butter, sugar and vanilla essence until smooth.

2. Add egg yolk and water. Cream for 1-2 minutes.

3. Fold in flour to make a dough.

4. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and leave in the fridge for 30 minutes.

5. After 30 minutes, preheat oven at 180 degrees Celsius.

6. Roll out dough and cut into circles. Press into tart tray.

7. Using a fork, prick some holes on the base of the tart dough in the tray.

8. Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 12 minutes.

You can make the filling while you wait for the tart shells to bake.

Filling ingredients:

250 g cream cheese

20 g unsalted butter

60 g fine sugar (sieved)

1 egg

1. Beat cream cheese, butter and sugar til smooth.

2. Add egg and beat til smooth.

3. When the shells are done, spoon the mixture into the shells and level them.

4. (optional) Add toppings of choco sauce or blueberry jam onto the individual tartlets above the mixture, and swirl them into the mixture with a toothpick.

5. Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 15 minutes.

And there you have it.