Plum Custard Tart

Zorra from Kochtopf is our host for this edition of Weekend Herb Blogging and once again, I've delved into my market basket and pulled out some plums

These are grown in the wonderfully named town of Koonoomoo here in Victoria, probably as far away as you get from their homeland. They are being sold under the name of La Petite and as we found out from the grower, they are plums from the Aquitaine region of France. With a bit of help from google, it appears that these are in fact, D'agen plums - most well known for their transformation into pruneaux d'agen - a much coveted prune. The grower also had some sun-dried versions to taste (she had left them out to dry for 10 days in the sun) and they were incredibly moist.

Though they have that appealing purplish skin, inside they are certainly sun-kissed

the golden flesh is delightfully sweet and I'd happily just enjoy them as is.

With a French fruit, I thought I'd pay homage to a French dish - prune and Armagnac tart - except I won't be using prunes or Armagnac. There's still a short buttery pastry case and a creamy custard, but the star will be these fresh plums.

Plum Custard Tart
[Makes a 12x34cm/5x13 inch tart]

sweet shortcrust pastry
D'agen plums, quartered
Custard:
4 egg yolks
50 grams caster sugar
1 cup cream
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla essence

Prepare the tart tin:
Roll out the pastry to line the base of your tin - cover with baking paper and weights and cook in a pre-heated 180°C/350°F oven for 10 minutes. Remove the paper and weights, lower the temperature to 160°C/320°F and cook for another 10 minutes.

Make the custard:
Place the egg yolks, caster sugar and vanilla into a bowl and using a hand mixer, beat until combined and the sugar has dissolved. Add the cream and milk and beat briefly just until amalgamated.

Assemble the Tart:
Place the tart tin onto a baking tray - this will catch any spills that might happen during cooking.

Pour a spoonful of custard into the tart tin and then add the plum quarters - you can arrange them in an organised manner or distribute them randomly, the choice is yours.

Pour over the remaining custard and return the tart to the oven - bake at 160°C/320°F for another 40-50 minutes or until the custard has set and the pastry is golden. If you feel it is browning too quickly lower the temperature and shield the tart with foil.

Let the tart cool in the tin before un-moulding - the custard will harden upon cooling and make handling it easier.

Sprinkle the top with icing sugar before serving.