When we were in the Yorkshire Dales a few weeks ago, we sampled the local foodie delights including something called a curd tart. Nothing to do with lemon curd but it was still a delight; soft buttery pastry with creamy but slightly tart filling with currants and spice. So once we were home I decided to make my own version to remind us of the trip. We had lots of lovely food that weekend, from the punnet of fresh sun ripened strawberries to the Wensleydale cheeses (they do more then just Wensleydale, try the Kit Calvert), the best sausage roll I have ever tasted to pie and pint in the pub!
Yorkshire Curd Tart
(recipe from The Hairy Bikers here )
For the Filling: 1.2 litres/2 pints of milk (semi-skimmed or full fat) 4 tbsp lemon juice 1/2 lemon, zest only 65g unsalted butter, softened 65g caster sugar 1 free-range egg, beaten 1/4 tsp grated nutmeg 60g currants 20-22cm diameter deep loose-bottomed flan tin or pie tin – lined with blind baked pastry (bought or home made with 175g flour/100g butter/2 tsp caster sugar/1 egg) To make the curds for the filling, firstly zest the lemon and store the zest in an airtight container in the fridge – you will need it tomorrow to make the filling – and then juice the lemon. Heat the milk in a large non-stick saucepan over a low heat and bring to a very gentle simmer. Remove from the heat and pour in the lemon juice, stir a few times and then leave to curdle for a couple of hours. Line a sieve with muslin and place over a large bowl. Pour in the curdled milk and allow to drain in the fridge for a minimum of six hours, ideally overnight. Preheat the oven to 180 ºC/fan 160 ºC. Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in the egg then stir in the curd cheese, lemon zest, nutmeg and currents. Spoon the curd into the pastry case and spread to evenly cover and bake for 30-35 minutes until the filling is set and lightly coloured. Leave to cool in the tin for at least 30 minutes before removing and eating. Serve at room temperature.