Fruit Mince Tarts

Fruit Mince Tarts by Kirsten Tibballs

Australia's Queen of Chocolate, Kirsten Tibballs, has been busy creating a delectable looking (and tasting) Christmas dessert for the whole family to enjoy this December:

 

Ingredients
Yield: 20
Preparation Time: 30 minutes + 2 hours cooking

Shortbread

Ingredients
225 g plain flour, sifted
125 g unsalted butter
75 g caster sugar
12 ml water
25 g whole eggs
QS vegetable oil spray, for greasing
QS plain flour, for dusting

Method
Grease the individual the brioche moulds (3 cm W x 6 cm D x 2cm H) with some vegetable oil spray.
Combine the sifted flour and butter to form a crumb. It is important that you do not overmix at this stage.
Combine the sugar, water and eggs and add to the crumb mixture. Combine until a smooth dough is formed without excessive mixing.
Press the shortbread into an even, flat disc and wrap in plastic wrap.
Allow to rest in the fridge for at least one hour.

Lightly dust the bench surface with flour.
When the dough has firmed up, roll the pastry out to a 3 mm thickness.
Cut out 85 mm discs and press the discs into each of the moulds.
Line the unbaked shells with plastic wrap and fill to the top with cooking rice.
Bake at 165˚C for 5 minutes.
After 5 minutes, remove the rice from the moulds and return to the oven for a further 7-9 minutes.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the moulds. Remove the pastry shells from the moulds and set aside.

Tropical Fruit Chutney

Ingredients
215g brown sugar
30ml orange juice
85g mango
210g pineapple, tinned in natural juice or fresh pinch of gingerbread spice
65g banana
20g sultanas
60g dried apricots
30g candied orange peel or dried orange peel
7g vinegar

Method
Dice the fresh and dried fruit to approximately 8 mm.
Melt the brown sugar in a pan with the orange juice.
Add in the diced mango and pineapple, followed by the gingerbread spice. Cook on a high heat. Add the banana and then the dried fruits. Reduce the heat to a low heat.
Add the vinegar and reduce the mixture until you achieve a chutney consistency, this will take at least an hour, stirring at regular intervals.
Place the prepared chutney into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Allow to cool. You can store this in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week before using.
Once cool, spoon it into each baked tart shell, approximately 22 – 25g per tart.

Swiss Meringue

Ingredients
190g caster sugar
95g egg whites

Method
Heat the sugar and egg whites together to 60°C in a stand mixer mixing bowl over a Bain-Marie.
Remove from the heat and mix in the stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment to create a medium to firm peak.
Spoon the meringue on top of the fruit mince, creating a swirl effect with the spoon. Lightly torch it.