Recipes

Serves: 8-10
Prep/Cook Time: 1hr 45mins
Skill Level: Intermediate

Your favourite Gin and Tonic cocktail encased in Vanilla Bean Sweet Shortcrust Pastry. We know what your guests will be ordering this Christmas!

INGREDIENTS

• 435g packet Carême Vanilla Bean Sweet Shortcrust Pastry, defrosted
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• Fresh mint leaves, to serve
• Fresh lime slices, to serve
• Caster sugar, for brûlée top

Filling

• 375ml thickened cream
• 1 whole egg and 6 egg yolks
• 90g caster sugar
• 1/4 cup milk
• Zest of 1 lime
• 45ml elderflower syrup*
• 90ml Gin

Candied Lime

• 3 limes, sliced into thin rounds
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 3/4 cup tonic water
• 30ml elderflower syrup

METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 180°C fan-forced (200°C conventional). Lightly dust work surface and pastry with flour. Use a 26cm round plate as a template to cut a circle.
2. Line a 23cm tart tin with the pastry, gently push the pastry into the tart, line with baking paper and fill with baking weights (or chickpeas), making sure you fill the weights to the top of your tart to support the sides during baking. Bake for 20 minutes, remove weights and reduce oven temperature to 160c fan-forced (180c non-fan). Brush the base of the tart case with beaten egg and return to oven for a further 5 minutes to brown the base of the tart. Set aside to cool completely.
3. To make the filling, whisk together the egg yolks, whole egg, and sugar, followed by the cream, milk, lime zest, elderflower syrup and Gin. Pour filling carefully into tart shell and bake for 25-30 minutes, until set with a slight wobble still in the centre. Leave to cool completely on a wire rack then transfer to a refrigerator until chilled.
4. Meanwhile, to make the candied lime, combine sugar, tonic water and elderflower syrup in a saucepan over medium heat until sugar has dissolved. Add the limes and cook for 20-30 minutes until soft. Transfer to a wire rack and set aside to cool completely.
5. Just before you are ready to serve the tart, sprinkle the top with an even layer of caster sugar and brûlée the sugar with a Chef’s torch until golden. Once the caramel top has cooled and hardened, top with candied lime, fresh mint leaves and a couple of fresh lime slices and serve immediately.

TOP TIP: If you don’t have a Chef’s torch, you can either brûlée the caramel under your oven grill (keeping a watchful eye at all times) or serve the tart without the brûlée top.