White Peach and Ume Tart - Recipe by Gareth Whitton and Catherine Way

Ingredients

1 × baked shortcrust Pastry shell (page 23)
70 g dulce de leche (page 139)

White peach puree:

5 large, ripe white peaches
200 g caster (superfine) sugar
300 g water
A few sprigs of lemon thyme

White peach gel:

200 g white peach puree, above
60 g reserved syrup, see method
80 g water
15 g caster (superfine) sugar
5 g pectin NH
5 g citric acid

Ume custard:

550 g pouring (whipping) cream
90 g cream cheese
160 g caster (superfine) sugar
65 g umeshu
260 g egg yolk

Method

Preheat the oven to 125 C.

White peach puree:

Cut the peaches in half, discarding the stones, then bring the sugar, water and thyme to a boil. Place the peaches into the syrup and simmer until they are soft. Transfer the fruit pieces to a blender and blend in until smooth. Pass the syrup through a fine sieve and reserve 60 g of the syrup for the gel.

White peach gel:

Add the peach puree, reserved syrup and water to a saucepan and bring to the boil. Combine the sugar with the pectin and whisk this mixture in while bringing back to the boil. Add the citric acid and remove from heat. Use a hand-held blender to blend until smooth, then pass the mixture through a fine sieve. Allow the gel to cool and set until firm.

Ume custard:

Place the cream, cream cheese, sugar and umeshu in a saucepan and bring to a simmer, then immediately remove from heat. To temper the egg yolks, add them to a mixing bowl and whisk in a small amount of the hot cream mixture until well incorporated.

Add the remaining cream mixture and use a hand-held blender to blend until the mixture is shiny and smooth – to prevent any air from being incorporated into the mix, keep the head of the blender underneath the surface. Strain the mixture through a sieve into a measuring jug to use straight away – you want to keep it as warm as possible to ensure the mixture cooks evenly in the oven.

To bake:

Spread the dulce de leche over the base of the prepared pastry shell and place in the oven. Pour the custard on top of the caramel layer. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the custard is slightly wobbly in the centre, then remove from the oven and allow to cool.

To glaze:

Once the custard has cooled sufficiently, melt the white peach gel in a small saucepan over a low heat (you can pop the tart into the fridge to help the custard to firm up, which will also help the gel to set faster). Once the gel has fully melted and has started to simmer slightly, weigh out 220 g of the gel into a measuring jug. Pour it into the tart in a circular motion, starting from the inside of the tart and moving outwards. Gently transfer the tart into the fridge and allow to set.

Once the gel is firm to the touch, remove the tart from the tin and portion into slices with a hot sharp knife.

Credits: This is an edited extract from Tarts Anon by Gareth Whitton & Catherine Way (Hardie Grant Books, RRP AUD$45). Now available in stores nationally.

Photo Credits: Photography: © Armelle Habib 2024