Orange Cream Tart

Recipe Courtesy: Mrs Mercy Antony Thoppil

This is yet another masterpiece from Mrs Mercy Antony Thoppil. The simplicity of the ingredients shows you how talented she is to whip up such delicacies .

The subtle tanginess of the orange layer is balanced with the sweet creamy custard layer and the biscuit layer that adds character to this beautifully presented recipe.

Ingredients

Biscuit Layer

Digestive Biscuits 200 gms

Butter 100 gms

Shortcrust Pastry Layer ( instead of Biscuit Layer)

Flour –1/2 lbs

Butter -4oz

Salt – a pinch

Water for binding

Custard Cream Layer

Milk – 1.5 cup* or 300 ml

Custard Powder-1 tbsp (heaped)

Cornflour – 1 tbsp (heaped)

Water- 1/4cup*+1/8cup* Or 75ml

Butter -3 oz or 84g

Castor Sugar -4.5 oz or 127g

Orange Jelly layer

Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice – 1 and 1/4 cup* or 250ml

lime juice – 1 tsp ( optional)

Sugar-1cup*or 200ml

Cold Water-3/4 cup*or 150ml

Cornflour-1tbsp

Custard Powder-1tbsp

Water-1/4 cup* or 50ml

Butter-1oz or 27g

Gelatin -1tsp

* 1 cup =200ml

Biscuit Layer

• Prepare a 9 inch pie dish with crumbled biscuits and melted butter.

• Make it like a case.Refrigerate.

This layer can be replaced with a shortcrust pastry case if you prefer that.

• Mix flour, salt and butter like bread crumbs.
• Add required amount of water to knead into a soft dough
• This has to be done fast.
• Roll it out on a board to fit the tin.
• Line it on the pastry tin and prick it all over with a fork so that it doesn’t rise.
• Line it with a baking parchment or greaseproof sheet. Place some baking beans on it.
• Bake till cooked at 180 degrees.
• Remove the baking beans and parchment paper.

Custard Cream Layer

• Heat milk in a sauce pan.

• Blend custard powder and cornflour smoothly in water in a bowl.

• Add this mix to hot milk slowly.

• Stir over heat until mixture boils and thickens. It will get very thick. Allow it to cool

• Cream the butter with sugar until smooth using a hand mixer.

• In a deep bowl, beat the cooled custard using a hand mixer . Make it creamy.

• Then add it to the butter-sugar mix and blend well.

• Spread over the biscuit layer. Refrigerate.

Orange Jelly Layer

• Combine cold water, orange juice and sugar

• Stir over heat until sugar dissolves and let it boil for a while ( approximately 10minutes in total)

• Add a tsp of lemon juice if you find the mixture too sweet. It helps to enhance the Orange flavour.

• Blend cornflour,custard powder and water in a bowl.

• Add this blended mixture slowly to the orange juice mixture. It will start to thicken immediately.

• Remove from heat.

• Add the butter and allow it to melt.

• You could keep a spoon or two of this orange mixture for garnishing purposes.

• Dissolve the gelatin in cold water and melt it over a hot water bowl or follow the instructions provided in the package

• Add the dissolved gelatin to the orange jelly mix.

• Let it cool. When cool, pour it over the cream mixture and let it set.

One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating. ~Luciano Pavarotti.