Lab Fodder... Shortbread Tarts with Raspberries!

So... Sonja works as a Post-Doc at Caltech. Her lab often has a traditional English tea-time (as a consequence of a number of lab members hailing from 'The Empire') and, in order to increase Son's popularity (and a few of her colleagues waistlines), I provide baked goods. Actually, the truth is that while I like to bake, I also like to eat, and thus off loading my delectable delights allows me to keep my boyish figure (okay, okay... big, round, mannish figure). Not that anyone is complaining; in fact if I hear again that I should open my own bakery I might have to take them seriously... mind you, baked goods always taste good when they're free and you didn't have to bake them yourself so perhaps I should wait for someone to say "Hey, how much can I pay you to bake me a ...?". Fingers crossed 'ey!

Oh, and as a little post script to the above, I should mention that Sonja is allergic to eggs... I know, I know... I can't believe I married someone who can't eat creme brulee, ice cream, brioche, lemon tart, etc. either. Still, she puts up with me so I guess it's a fair compromise... Still it makes me sad that Son often calls tea-time and then has to sit back with her cup of green tea while everyone else gets to devour something her husband has baked. Thus, the following recipe was put together because Son can eat it and therefore, on this occasion, partake in the sugar induced revelry that is the Bronner-Fraser Lab tea time, without the fear of a reprisal led by her stomach!

These little tarts are quite straightforward to bake. I was surprised at how 'wet' the dough was and was concerned that forming little shells would be quite difficult. I overcame that by equally dividing the dough into 24 pieces (the number of holes in my mini-muffin pan), gently rolling them into a ball, and then, with the aid of my dough tamper (the wooden implement as shown on right) pushed down on the balls of dough forming a perfect little tart shell... unfortunately I did forget to refrigerate the dough before baking leading to significant dough puffage and thus my hard work basically came to nought! Oh well, something to improve on for next time...

While a little lighter than I would have liked (due to aforementioned lack of refrigeration), the shortbread was nicely buttery with good crumb, the lemon flavoured filling was fresh and creamy, and the raspberry topped it all off nicely!

Shortbread Tarts with Raspberries

Ingredients

Shortbread Tarts
227 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
72g confectioners (powdered or icing) sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
210 grams all-purpose flour
15g cornstarch or rice flour
1/8 tsp salt

Cream Cheese Filling
227 grams cream cheese - softened
396 grams can sweetened condensed milk
80ml lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
Zest of one lemon
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract


Garnish
Any combination of berries or other fruit such as slices of kiwi.

Method

Shortbread Tarts
Lightly butter or spray your mini-muffin tin (approximately 2 inch (5 cm) in diameter). Set aside. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (170 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. In the bowl of your electric mixer, with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together (approximately two minutes). Beat in the vanilla extract. Add the flour, cornstarch and salt and mix just until incorporated.

Divide dough into 24 even pieces (or however many holes your mini-muffin pan has) and place one ball of dough in center of each muffin tin. With your fingertips or a dough tamper, press the dough up the sides of the individual muffin tins. Once filled, place the tart pan, with the unbaked shells, in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes so the shortbread dough can firm up (this will help to prevent the shortbread from puffing up during baking... an instruction worth noting). Bake for approximately 18 - 20 minutes or until lightly browned. About halfway through the baking time, lightly prick each shortbread with the tines of a fork, if they have puffed up. Check again after another five minutes and prick again if they have puffed up. Place the pan on a wire rack to cool the shortbread. When completely cooled, remove the tarts from the pan. They are quite fragile so be careful when removing (these may be made in large quantities and frozen).

Cream Cheese Filling
In your food processor or electric mixer beat the cream cheese until fluffy. Add the condensed milk, lemon juice, zest and vanilla and process until smooth. Transfer to a bowl, cover and refrigerate until serving time. The filling can be made several days in advance (actually improves the flavour).

To Serve
Fill the tart shells with the cream cheese filling. The filled tart shells can be made several hours in advance and refrigerated. Just before serving top with fresh berries or cut up fruit.