Raspberry Brioche Custard Tarts

Mar 15

Mar 15 Raspberry Brioche Custard Tarts

Pastry, Pies and Tarts, Breads / Buns / Rolls

Soft, buttery brioche buns filled with sweet berries, cardamom sugar, and vanilla custard...a decadent brunch treat to be sure. But now that we're starting to see the light at the end of social distancing, I'm having fantasies of entertaining friends and seducing them into visiting with fresh baked goods like these.

While the brioche tarts are best the day they're baked, the dough and custard can be made the day before, so all you'll need to do is assemble and bake before your guests arrive. I recommend using fresh berries for your filling as frozen fruit may release too much liquid into the custard when baking. Strawberries are also a good choice once they're back in season. They'd be excellent tossed in the cardamom sugar. Don't skip the mint leaf garnish, I love the brightness that they add.

The dough is very sticky, almost batter-like, so if you don't already have, I'd recommend making the minor investment of a bowl scraper. It will help you get all of the butter into the dough rather than on the side of the bowl.

Raspberry Brioche Custard Tarts Recipe:

Do ahead
The custard needs time to chill and the dough requires an overnight rest

Yield:
6 large pastries

Difficulty:
Moderate

Ingredients:

For the Dough:

60 ml (¼ cup) whole milk, 80° F to 100° F
5 grams (1½ tsp) instant yeast
200 grams all-purpose flour
18 grams (1½ TBSP) granulated sugar
1 tsp coarse kosher salt or ½ tsp fine salt
2 large eggs, room temperature
100 grams (7 TBSP) unsalted butter, room temperature
Butter flavored, or flavorless non-stick spray

For the Custard:
This will yield more custard than you'll need for this recipe, but it's difficult to make a much smaller batch than this. It will last up to 5 days refrigerated, enjoy with some sliced fresh fruit and/or granola.

3 large egg yolks
⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon (79 grams) granulated sugar
10 grams (1¼ TBSP) cornstarch
10 grams (1¼ TBSP) all-purpose flour
245 ml (1 cup + ½ TBSP) whole milk
½ tsp vanilla extract

Fruit Filling:

6 ounces / 170 grams fresh raspberries (or 12 medium fresh strawberries, halved)
½ tsp granulated sugar
¼ tsp cardamom, optional, (1 tsp of lemon zest would also be nice)

Dough Wash:

1 tsp (5 grams) whole milk
1 large egg
Pinch salt

To Serve:

Fresh mint leaves
Coarse sugar like Turbinado or Demerara for sprinkling

Instructions:

Make the dough

Combine warm milk and yeast. Set aside.

In a medium bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the flour, sugar and salt. Add the milk mixture and eggs then beat with the paddle attachment until a dough forms. Add the butter 2 TBSP at time and beat until the butter is fully incorporated, scraping down the bowl as needed (that bowl scraper I mentioned up top comes in handy here), before adding the next TBSP. Once all of the butter has been added, switch to the dough hook and knead until cohesive and a soft, sticky dough forms, 8-10 more minutes.

Spray a medium bowl with non-stick spray. Scrape the dough into the bowl, give the top of the dough a spray, then cover tightly with plastic and refrigerate overnight.

Make the custard

In a medium bowl, whisk together egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch and flour.

Combine the milk and vanilla extract in a medium saucepan and heat - stirring gently to avoid burning on the bottom - until you start to see small bubbles appear around the edges of the pan. Do not let it boil. Remove from heat and slowly pour approximately ⅓ cup of the milk into the bowl with the eggs whisking vigorously until well combined. Pour the egg mixture back into the saucepan with the remaining milk, turn the heat back up to medium and cook for 3 or 4 minutes, until the mixture thickens and large bubbles break on the surface of the custard. Continue to cook and whisk for another minute then transfer the custard to a small bowl. Press plastic directly on the surface of the mixture to avoid a skin forming on top and refrigerate until cool (3 or 4 hours) or overnight.

Tip: It's important to see those large bubbles breaking on the surface of the custard. This is how you know you've properly cooked the cornstarch and flour.

Assemble and bake

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and gently press air out of dough. Lightly spray a work surface with non-stick spray. Turn out the dough on the the work surface and divide into 6 equal portions, about 78 grams each. Shape into balls and place on the prepared baking sheet. Work fairly quickly so the butter doesn’t get too warm and hard to work with. It may help to spray your hands as well to avoid sticking.

Spray a flat spatula or bowl scraper with non-stick spray to prevent sticking and press each ball down into a 4-inch disk. Make a small indentation in the center of each disk, tightly cover the baking sheet with plastic and let rise until noticeably puffy, about 1½ hours. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350° F.

While the buns rise, wash and thoroughly dry the berries, and toss with sugar and cardamom if using. In a small bowl, beat the Dough Wash ingredients together.

Once the buns are ready, use your fingers to gently press a well into the center of each bun, leaving a generous 1-inch border around the edges. Lightly brush the dough wash over the entire bun, then spoon custard into the wells. Place berries on top of the custard and bake for 15-20 minutes until dark golden brown. Remove from oven and cool completely to room temperature on a wire rack.

Once cooled, sprinkle with coarse sugar and mint leaves and serve. The buns are best the day they're made, but if you need to store them, tightly wrap and keep in the refrigerator. Remove from refrigerator an hour before serving for the buns to soften.