Coffee-Poached Quince & Cognac Custard Tart

the anatomy of a gorgeous holiday tart

a tart fit for a sugar plum quince fairy

If the Nutcracker was embodied in a holiday baked good, it might be surely would be this gorgeous tart. Simplistic and chic, poached quince dances with aromatic notes of coffee, vanilla, cinnamon and citrus while waves of silky custard delicately scented with cognac settle upon a shortbread cookie-esque tart crust that is sturdy and ethereally light all at once. I am generally pretty humble about my food/work, but this tart is stunning. On more than one occasion, I’ve witnessed people who aren’t dessert people (self-professed) crushing a slice with their bare hands, no fork necessary. I’ve been making it for 3 Decembers running now and my eyes still roll back in my head a little every year I take that first bite. This beauty would make a lovely spin around your holiday table, forks or no forks - your choice. Caveat (as with many of my recipes), it may look like this is a very involved, multi-layered recipe. In some ways it is, but if you break all the parts down and prep ahead, the tart actually comes together in no time — no holiday stress required. More about quince noted in my previous post. Let’s look at the recipe in each of its 3 components and it’ll be more manageable. Here’s an ode to this tart’s anatomy…

a holiday beauty, plate by Soft Edge Studio

Step 1 - Poach the quince until it’s jewel-toned

I mean…yes, please. plate by Mellow

Depending on where you’re living, quince can be a bit tough to find - specialty grocers, greenmarkets, or if you’re lucky, a tree in your own backyard, are likely sources. This is a perfect lazy Sunday afternoon project, slow and low are keywords here (a lot of time and a low heat). This is also a highly sustainable project…you can use the residual poaching syrup for holiday cocktails and any leftover poached fruit (after your tart is made) for a cheese plate, pate/charcuterie pairing, with yogurt and granola, atop pancakes or french toast, or simply with toast and butter.

2-3 quince (1.5 - 2 quince will be sufficient per tart; 3 if you want leftovers) - peeled and cut into 1/6’s, remove any seeds and the bit of core left in the middle (as per the photo above)

750g sugar

700ml water (about 3 cups)

1/4 cup coffee beans

2 cinnamon sticks

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla paste or powder (or 1/2 vanilla bean, split down the middle)

peel of 1/2 lemon

Place sugar and water in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer until sugar is dissolved. Add quince, coffee beans, cinnamon sticks, vanilla and lemon peel and reduce heat to a low simmer. Cover the quince with a piece of parchment cut into a circle the diameter of the pot (technical kitchen term: cartouche). Slowly poach 2-3 hours until the quince is deep ruby colored and soft but firm. Store fruit in its poaching syrup in the fridge until ready to use.

Step 2 - Make the tart dough (read down for anatomical photos)

This is a classic sweet pastry dough recipe that I’ve adapted from Natalie Paull’s clutch baking book, Beatrix Bakes. It’s super easy, no mixer required, and very forgiving — meaning if you f*ck up and roll it while it’s too warm and need to chill it down and re-roll it (like 3 or 4 times) it’s a dream and still comes out perfect. ;) No scraps go unused - make mini tarts with any remains!

makes dough for 1+ 9” tart crust (1+ = you’ll likely have extra dough for 1-2 mini tartlets)

200g AP flour

40g whole grain flour *I love using a bit of nutty wholegrain flour in this dough for depth and flavor. My recs - something like ølands wheat, einkorn or spelt. If you only have AP on-hand, use all 240g of that and it’ll be lovely. *if you’re gluten-free, swap all 240g of flour for a gluten-free flour blend

60g sugar

2g (1/4 teaspoon) kosher salt or sea salt

140g unsalted butter, VERY cold and diced

1 egg yolk

50ml heavy cream

Whisk flours, sugar and salt together. Add in the cubed butter and mix it into the flour with your finger tips until you get a crumbly, lumpy dough (baby lil lumps). Then whisk together the egg yolk and cream and add into the flour mix. Mix the dough with your hands until it comes together and feels a bit like playdough. Flatten it into a smooth circle or square, about 1 inch thick, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 15-20 minutes. On a lightly floured surface and with a floured rolling pin or wine bottle, roll out the dough until it’s about 1 inch more in diameter than your tart pan (so it folds over the pan nicely) and is about 1/4 inch thick . If you have trouble rolling it out, check if it’s too warm (tears easily or is sticky) or too cold (brittle and breaky dough). When it’s at the right temperature you’ll feel it and see it as it’s very easy to roll out.

Carefully and gently lay the dough over / into a greased tart pan and press it down around the edges of the pan and then trim the top edges leaving you with the excess scraps. This is when I wince at myself for not having taken a video (note to self).

Once it’s set nicely into the pan, cover the dough with aluminum or parchment and freeze it for at least hour or overnight (the crust will bake MUCH better and be more stable and buttery, light and crispy via freezing). When you’re ready to bake, pull the tart pan / dough from the freezer and place a thin layer of sugar atop the aluminum or parchment layer to blind bake the crust. Sugar is a great pie / dough weight as it’s equal weight across all the dough and when it gets toasted in the oven during blind baking it brings out beautiful toasty, caramely flavor that you can use in other baked goods. Side note: blind baking is simply a term to bake the crust before adding the filling so it’s stable and not soggy or undercooked or just doesn’t result in that “ick” factor.

Blind bake the crust at 350F / 175C for 30-40 minutes until the crust is nice and golden brown. Once baked, carefully remove the aluminum/parchment and place the toasted sugar in a jar or container to store it for another use. Now you’re ready to assemble the tart for it’s second and final bake, but first we need the final component: pastry cream. (your custard)….