Egg Tarts

Egg tart is one of the Hong Kong classic. Everyone in Hong Kong loves egg tart. They like to eat it for breakfast, brunch as dim sum or tea time snack. An egg tart is a baked egg custard in a pastry. There are mainly 2 types of egg tarts. One with a shortcrust pastry and the other with a puff pastry. This recipe is the shortcrust one. I personally love this crust the most. It is buttery with a hint of savory, which is perfect with the smooth and lightly sweetened egg custard. Whenever I am baking these little egg tarts at home, the house just smells incredible. It is hard to eat only one. Maybe, I can sneak in two in my stomach before anyone found out.

Egg Tarts (Adapted from Homemade Tea Restaurant Signature Dishes)

7 tarts

Required tools:

–   7 (3-inch wide, 1 ½-inch deep) tart tins

Ingredients:

Egg Custard:

–   2 large eggs (room temperature)

–   45g sugar

–   40g evaporated milk

–   145ml water

Pastry Crust:

–   115g cake flour (sifted)

–   70g butter (room temperature)

–   20g powdered sugar

–   10g evaporated milk

–   ½ large egg yolk (room temperature)

Directions:

1. For the pastry crust, in a large mixing bowl with an electronic mixer, beat the butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Add ½ egg yolk and mix together. Add the evaporated milk and beat well. Slowly add the flour. Mix until the dough starts to come together. Form the dough into a round disk with hands. Wrap it in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 375˚F.
3. Meanwhile, for the egg custard, in a small saucepan over high heat, bring the water to a boil. Turn the heat down to medium, add the sugar and cook until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and let it cool completely.
4. Back to the crust, divide the dough into 7 portions. Roll each portion into a round ball. Flatten each ball into flat disks with hands. Place a flat disk into a tart tin and mold the dough into a tart shape. The dough should be about a ¼-inch below the top of the tart tin edge. Poke at few holes at the bottom of the tart with a fork. Chill in the fridge for 15 minutes.
5. In a medium bowl, beat 2 eggs with a hand whisk. Add evaporated milk and beat until combined. Stir in the syrup. Strain the mixture and remove bubbles with a spoon.
6. Line the prepared tart tins on a baking sheet. Fill the tarts 80% full with the egg mixture. Bake for 18 – 22 minutes until the egg custard is puffed up a little, and the crust is golden brown. Remove from oven and cool for 5 – 10 minutes. Tap the tart tin bottom lightly on the table. Turn the tart tin over and remove the egg tarts carefully. Serve immediately for best taste.
7. For storage, let the egg tarts cool completely. Put them in a plastic container for up to 2 days. Eat at room temperature or bake in a 300˚F pre-heated oven for 5 minutes.

Tips:

1. When molding the dough into the tart tins, remember not to make the tart side too thin. If not, the egg tart will break very easily when finished.
2. If you prefer a thicker crust, you can make 6 tarts with the same amount of dough.
3. Try to remove all bubbles in the egg mixture before baking.
4. During baking, keep an eye out for the egg tarts for the last 5 minutes. Some of them may finish earlier than the others.

Source: Read