Coffee Custard Tart Recipe on Food52 (2024)

Serves a Crowd

by: ALittleZaftig

April17,2011

4.5

2 Ratings

  • Makes one 9" tart

Jump to Recipe

Author Notes

I made a thin, crisp shortbread crust flavored with concentrated coffee, whole wheat pastry flour, and turbinado sugar and filled it with a barely sweet, egg-rich, coffee scented custard. Since there are only two tablespoons of sugar in the custard, I think it might be equally nice for dessert or as part of a brunch. - ALittleZaftig —ALittleZaftig

Test Kitchen Notes

Back in the days before I could afford an apartment with air conditioning and the summer temperatures in Boston sweltered for days on end, I had to take my morning coffee iced, with lots of cream, just to make it through getting dressed for work without wilting. This tart brings me back, sans the sweat dripping down my back, thank God. The concentrated coffee holds its own well against the barely sweet creamy custard. The brown-sugared shortbread is a great textural counterpart. My only complaint is that while the edges of the custard set well, the center stayed quite squidgy. No worries, I have plenty of spoons. - cheese1227 —cheese1227

  • Test Kitchen-Approved

What You'll Need

Ingredients
  • Coffee Custard
  • 1 1/2 cupsvery strong coffee
  • 7 egg yolks
  • 2 cupsheavy cream
  • 2 tablespoonssugar
  • 2 tablespoonsall purpose flour
  • Coffee Shortbread Crust
  • 1/2 cupunsalted butter
  • 1/4 cupturbinado sugar
  • 1/2 cupall purpose flour
  • 1/2 cupwhole wheat pastry flour
  • 1 tablespoonconcentrated coffee
  • 1 pinchsugar
Directions
  1. Coffee Custard
  2. Start with very strong coffee. I use 3/4 c. ground dark roast coffee to 4 c. water and use a French press. Any method will work, but the stronger the coffee the better, I think. Take 1 1/2 c. coffee and simmer it in a small saucepan over medium heat until it is reduced to about 1/2 c.
  3. In a medium saucepan, whisk the egg yolks. Whisk in the cream, sugar, and 1/2 c. concentrated coffee, reserving 1 T. of the coffee for the crust. Bring to a simmer over low heat and cook, stirring constantly, until it is beginning to thicken and coats a wooden spoon. Whisk in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until thickened. The custard will thicken slightly as it cools, too. Sieve the custard if you fear you have lumps. Set it aside until it is time to fill the tart crust.
  1. Coffee Shortbread Crust
  2. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl or the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar. Add the flours and mix only until incorporated. Stir in the coffee concentrate.
  3. Transfer the shortbread dough to a 9" tart pan, and pat it out. Sprinkle it with a pinch or two of sugar to make the job a bit easier. Using your fingertips, press the crust evenly into the tart pan and up its sides. Place a sheet of parchment paper into the tart shell and fill it with pie weights or dried beans. Bake the crust for 15 minutes. Remove it from the oven and gently remove the parchment and pie weights or beans. Bake the crust for an additional 10 minutes. Cool the crust slightly and then pour in the coffee custard. Spread it with a spatula. Chill in the refrigerator to set and until serving time.

Tags:

  • Pie
  • Custard
  • Tart
  • American
  • Egg
  • Milk/Cream
  • Coffee
  • Serves a Crowd
  • Breakfast
  • Dessert
Contest Entries
  • Your Best Recipe with Coffee

Popular on Food52

19 Reviews

Fariman M. May 15, 2018

2 tbsp sugar is not enough I usually cut the sugar in 1/2 but this was not correct i actually put 4 tbsp.

Emily November 20, 2017

Just made this and the custard broke...waiting for it to cool to see if it is salvageable. What went wrong?

Mother D. June 5, 2014

Hmmmm... From what I have read, coffee flavor profile is changed considerably for the worse when reheated. That being the case, I can only imagine that a cup and a half of strong coffee reduced to a third of its volume is going to change to something not to the better. Why not just brew cold brew 2 1/3 Tbsp. course ground coffee with a 9 T water and skip the boil and bitterness?

ALittleZaftig June 5, 2014

Thank you for the suggestion. The flavor profile of the finished tart is softened by all of the cream, and I have not found the flavor bitter. I haven't used leftover coffee, and have always reduced fresh coffee. When I first developed the recipe I suspected that I needed a lot of oomph and very little liquid to convey the flavor across all of that egg and cream. I will try your suggestion. I suspect it will be lovely, though perhaps softer in coffee flavor. We are made better cooks through sharing. Thanks again! And let me know if you have good results, too.

Elaura January 31, 2012

Made this just last weekend, added a bit of dark rum to the filling and added a meringue on top with muscovado sugar to use up some of the egg whites...it was delicious, thank you for the lovely recipe!

ALittleZaftig January 31, 2012

That sounds wonderful!

Peter July 8, 2011

I can't say I'm a fan of coffee, but my wife loved this. Thanks for the great recipe!

Daphne May 3, 2011

As soon as I get my kitchen back I'm making this and all of your tarts look fantastic!

FrancesRen April 29, 2011

thank you for this recipe. I love it. what a great substitute for morning coffee. :)

wssmom April 21, 2011

I love the coffee in the crust!

ALittleZaftig April 20, 2011

Thank you! So kind of all of you.

mrslarkin April 19, 2011

this sounds delicious!

Lizthechef April 19, 2011

Love your recipe -

VanessaS April 19, 2011

Yum, looks great!

Midge April 18, 2011

This sounds great!

ALittleZaftig April 18, 2011

Thank you both!

ALittleZaftig April 17, 2011

I simmered down strong coffee until it was reduced by 2/3.

WinnieAb April 17, 2011

ok thanks for clarifying :)

WinnieAb April 17, 2011

Sounds postively heavenly. When you say concentrated coffee, do you mean freeze-dried coffee powder? Or something else?

Coffee Custard Tart Recipe on Food52 (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between a custard tart and a Portuguese custard tart? ›

The Portuguese tarts rely more on egg yolks to impart richness, whereas a standard custard relies more heavily on milk or cream. Using that many egg yolks is what gives these little parcels their rich flavor and luscious texture.

What is the difference between custard tart and flan? ›

The flan can be compared to Portuguese pastel de nata or a British custard tart. It can be personalized by adding caramel, coconut, or even chocolate. Custard tarts or flans pâtissier are a baked pastry consisting of an outer pastry crust filled with egg custard.

Do you eat custard tarts hot or cold? ›

They can be enjoyed warm or cold. If you've made a batch but don't want to eat them all they will freeze well. Just place a few in a tupperware box and freeze for up to 3 months. You probably won't need to though as they will all disappear pretty sharpish!

What is custard tart made of? ›

Modern custard tarts are usually made from shortcrust pastry, eggs, sugar, milk or cream, and vanilla, sprinkled with nutmeg and then baked. Unlike egg tart, custard tarts are normally served at room temperature.

What are the 3 types of custard? ›

There are three types of custard: baked, stirred, and frozen. Baked custards include bread pudding, flan, and cheesecake, and are prepared by baking in an oven or water bath. Boiled Custards include beverages like eggnog. Puddings, creme anglaise (krem on-GLAYZ), and pastry cream are some examples of stirred custards.

What is the famous Portuguese custard tart called? ›

Pastel de nata (Portuguese: [pɐʃˈtɛl dɨ ˈnatɐ]; pl. : pastéis de nata; Portuguese: [pɐʃˈtɐjʒ ðɨ-])) is a Portuguese egg custard tart pastry, optionally dusted with cinnamon.

Are egg tarts and custard tarts the same? ›

Also called custard tarts, English-style egg tarts have been around since at least the medieval times. Known back then as doucets or darioles, they were served at the coronation banquet of Henry IV in 1399.

Is crème brûlée made from custard? ›

At its most basic, crème brûlée is a creamy, pudding-like, baked custard with a brittle top of melted sugar that cracks when you gently tap it with a spoon. The custard is made with heavy cream, eggs, sugar, and vanilla.

Is cheesecake a custard tart? ›

Some people classify it as a torte due to the usage of many eggs, which are the sole source of leavening, as a key factor. Others find compelling evidence that it is a custard pie, based on the overall structure, with the separate crust, the soft filling, and the absence of flour.

Can you leave custard tart out overnight? ›

McDowell says that fruit and custard pies are best eaten within the first 24 hours after baking, but can be stored at room temperature for up to two days—any longer than that, and the crust will start to get soggy.

How long do custard tarts last in the fridge? ›

Because the tarts are made from eggs, cream and milk, it's important to store any leftovers in the fridge, where they can be kept for up to three days. That said, these tarts are at their peak when they're served fresh, still warm from the oven.

Does Costco sell Portuguese tarts? ›

Kirkland Signature Portuguese Tart 12 Pack 700 gram.

Why does my custard tart taste eggy? ›

But when you overcook a custard, suddenly the connection is very, very clear. A nasty eggy taste takes up residence and won't go away. That's likely the result of heat breaking down the protein components cysteine and methionine to release sulphur, says Crosby.

What country is custard tart from? ›

There's much contention over who first 'invented' the custard tart, but it's documented that 'darioles' were served as far back as Henry IV's coronation in 1399. Meanwhile, over in Portugal, monks in the Jerónimos Monastery in Lisbon were making pastéis de nata as early as the 13th century.

Why is my custard tart watery? ›

Your custard was clearly overbaked, that's why it weeps liquid. Add more sugar. It reduces curdling, because the sugar molecules get in the way of the proteins trying to bind to each other.

Why is it called a Portuguese tart? ›

The Portuguese egg tart was invented thanks to monks and laundry. With its distinctive caramelized, creme brulee-like topping, pastéis de nata are arguably Portugal's favorite dessert. They were supposedly first made in the 13th century by monks in the Jerónimos Monastery in Lisbon.

What is Portuguese custard made of? ›

The tart's ingredients are very simple: a puff pastry filled with a custard made of cream, egg yolks, sugar, flour, and lemon zest. But that simplicity does not mean all egg tarts are created equal — the competition for the best pastel de nata in Lisbon is fierce, and some bakeries even keep their recipe secret.

What's the difference between egg tart and nata? ›

Nata refers to whipped cream, in Portuguese or Spanish. Using the light-as-a-cloud whipped cream and whipped egg-white produces a lighter filling in the pastry shell than does using a traditional Iberian egg-custard flan filling.

Is egg tart Chinese or Portuguese? ›

The egg tart (traditional Chinese: 蛋撻; simplified Chinese: 蛋挞; Cantonese Yale: daahn tāat; pinyin: dàntǎ) is a kind of custard tart found in Chinese cuisine, derived from the English custard tart and Portuguese pastel de nata.

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