Stunning, Mango and Coconut Tarts,

with crystallised ginger and lime syrup.

These delicious, mango and coconut tarts are great served as a memory of summer in the middle of winter. Filled with coconut pastry cream and topped with fresh mango and lime syrup they never fail to impress. Serve them as a dessert, or as part of a dessert selection. And they make a stunning addition to an afternoon tea.

Working ahead.

On the face of it they may look daunting. But don’t be put off, all the component parts can be made a day or two in advance making it a straightforward process to assemble the tarts and impress your guests. I have described each component separately here as I think it’s important to think of each element independently. Any part of this could be used in different dishes. Think of this as four recipes in one.

Delicious, Mango and Coconut Tarts

Makes four.

Rich Almond Shortcrust Pastry.

This is a great pastry for smaller tarts, crisp without been tough. Half a recipe is enough to make four by 7cm tart shells. Go to our post on  ‘How to use perforated tart rings‘ if you need help to produce the tarts. I’ve done this as two separate posts to simplify the process. Of course you could use the same fillings below with any small pastry tart shells.

125g                unsalted butter (soft)

75g                  icing sugar

45g                  ground almonds

50g                  egg yolks (2 med)

210                  plain flour

pinch salt

How do i make the pasty?

Place the soft butter, salt, and icing sugar into a room temperature bowl and cream together. Beat the mixture until it is light and fluffy then fold in the ground almonds followed by the egg yolks.

Fold in the flour taking care not to overmix. Turn the dough out onto the work surface and form into a flattened ball. Put the dough inside a plastic bag and chill in the fridge for at least an hour before use. You can of course make the pastry ahead of time and freeze it until needed. It should keep about three months in the freezer.           

While the pastry is been made, and baked it’s a good time to make the syrup and crystallised ginger to go with the tarts. Both can be made well ahead of time and can also be stored in the freezer ready for use.

Crystalised ginger strips.

2tbsp (heaped)             very thinly cut matchsticks of fresh ginger

6tbsp               water

8tbsp               caster sugar

Dash                lemon juice

                        caster sugar to coat the strips

You will need a small saucepan, with a fine sieve. A shallow tray covered with a layer of caster sugar and two forks.

Half fill the small saucepan with water and add the ginger strips. Bring the pan to the boil, then strain the pan into a fine sieve discarding the water. This will take a little fire out of the ginger and soften the texture. Add the measured water, sugar, and lemon juice to the pan and return to the heat. One the pan is simmering, and the sugar has dissolved add the blanched ginger and cook on a steady simmer for about five minutes.

Coating the ginger.

The syrup should now be thickened, just a bit thinner that runny honey. Remove the pan from the heat and using a fork, lift some of the ginger strips from the syrup. Let them drain on the fork for a few seconds then drop them onto the tray of sugar. Take a clean fork and coat the ginger in sugar aiming to get individual strips of ginger coated all over in the sugar. Go back to the pan again, remove more ginger and repeat the process. Make sure you don’t mix up the forks and get into a sticky mess.

Once all the ginger is coated leave it on the tray for ten to fifteen minutes to cool and set then separate the ginger from the sugar and store it in a small airtight container until needed. If moisture is kept away the ginger it will keep for a few weeks.

Tip.

Don’t throw away the left-over sugar or syrup. Use the sugar in baking and the syrup will have a wonderful ginger kick which can be used to glaze a cake or sponge. Store it in the fridge or freeze it for later use.

Lime syrup

120ml              water

130g                caster sugar

                        Juice of a lime

2                      peeled strips of lime zest

½                     star anise

1                      small green chilli (a green finger chilli is ideal)

1cm                 cinnamon stick

This is a wonderful accompaniment to any fruit-based dessert particularly tropical fruits. Try it to lift a Panna Cotta or to compliment a Lemon Tart. Its best made the day before but it’s not essential.

Place everything apart from the chilli into a small pan and bring to the simmer. Don’t let the pan simmer more than a couple of minutes or you will get too thick a syrup. Pour the syrup into a bowl and let cool slowly. This will give time for the flavours to develop.

Storing the syrup.

When the syrup has cooled take the chilli and stab it four or five times with the point of a small knife, DO NOT cut it open. Add the chilli to the syrup, cover the bowl and place the syrup in the fridge. If possible, leave the syrup overnight but remember to remove the chilli in the morning. The idea is to let the sugar gently pull the flavour out of the chilli without extracting too much heat. This recipe will make more than you need. But as with the ginger syrup this can be stored in the fridge or frozen for later use.

Coconut pastry cream.

180g                rich coconut milk

2                      large egg yolks

35g                  caster sugar

8g                    plain flour

8g                    cornflour

1                      fresh kaffir lime leaf

                        Icing sugar to dust over

You will need,

Medium saucepan

2 Pyrex bowls

Wisk

Silicone spatula

Small sieve

Preparation.

Take the can of coconut milk and give it a good shake then measure the liquid into a pan that’s wide enough to let you mix the contents of the well. Add the lime leaf then bring the pan to a simmer and turn off the heat.

Weigh the sugar, flour, and cornflour into a bowl large enough to take all the ingredients and mix to a paste. Use a little of the left-over coconut milk to loosen the mix if needed. Have a second medium sized bowl on hand which has a touch of oil rubbed around the inside. This will avoid the finished coconut cream sticking to the bowl.

On to the cooking.

Slowly whisk the warm (not hot) coconut milk into the bowl. Don’t tip it in all at once or you may get lumps. Pour the mixture back into the pan and return to a medium heat. Give it one last whisk then change over to a flat tipped silicone spatula to do the stirring.

Keep stirring the mixture all the time working the spatula back and forth across the base of the pan and around the sides. This action, combined with the flexible flat face of the tool keeping in contact with the pan will stop the mix sticking and burning. A wooden spoon just cannot do this.

Storing the finished pastry cream.

As the mixture gets near to the simmer it will begin to thicken and should become like thick porridge. As soon as this stage is reached, or if you see any signs of boiling tip the cooked pastry cream into the greased bowl. Remove the lime leaf then scrape all the cream out of the pan and flatten slightly with the spatula. Using a small sieve cover the surface of the cream with a thin layer of icing sugar the cling film the bowl over. The steam trapped under the film will turn the sugar to a syrup and stop a thick skin forming on the top of the cream as it cools. Let the cream cool completely before use.

To assemble the tarts.

You will need,

4 x                   7cm blind baked individual tart shells

1                      Medium Pyrex bowl

Whisk

Chopping board and knife

I                       large ripe, but not soft mango

1                      passion fruit

70ml                double cream

1 ½ tsp            caster sugar

Dash                vanilla extract

Disposable piping bag

Small spoons

Icing sugar to serve

Peel the mango and cut neat 1cm slices from the flesh then cut the slices into 1cm cubes. Use the offcuts to make a smoothie or eat them as chefs treats.

Pour the double cream into one of the bowls and add the vanilla and sugar. Whisk the cream to a light peak, don’t over whish or the cream may curdle later.

Take the cooled coconut cream and give it a few beats with the whisk to break it up. Once it is smooth begin to fold in the whipped cream with a spatula. Once the cream is incorporated stop mixing, overdoing it may curdle the cream. You should have a mousse texture that will support itself if pushed up with a spoon.

Transfer some of the mousse to a piping bag. I recommend plastic disposable bags which are more hygienic than the old cloth type. They are made of recyclable plastic so once used can be washed and popped into your plastics bin.

Filling the tarts.

Trim about 4 cm off the point of the bag (never do that before you fill the bag!). Applying gentle pressure to the bag fill each of the tart shells just below the rim with the mousse.

Spoon a little of the lime syrup over the diced mango as if you were dressing a salad. Then using a small spoon top each tart with the diced mango. Finish each tart with a few strands of the crystallised ginger. Serve the tarts finished with flicks of the syrup, a few strands of ginger and a dusting of icing sugar.

Yes, that is a lot of work, but don’t be put off as I said at the beginning, its really four recipes in one. make the pastry the week before and freeze it until you need it. The syrup can be made a few days ahead or again frozen. The coconut cream and tart shells are made the day before. All you have to do on the day is fold the fresh cream into the coconut, dice the mango and put the tarts together. And remember very importantly, any of these elements could de used to make another dessert. So your never just learning one thing!

Enjoy Life,

John.

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©John Webber. 2023