Citrus tart

A recipe from cooking-ez.com

For 1 tart, you will need:

• 1 1 grapefruit
• 2 1 orange
• 3 750 ml Poaching syrup
• 4 1 vanilla pod
• 5 2 stars anise
• 6 250 g Sweetcrust pastry (pâte sablée)
• 7 20 g butter
• 8 2 tablespoons caster sugar
• 9 20 g butter
• 10 2 tablespoons caster sugar
• Total weight: 1,755 grams

Times:

Preparation	Resting	Cooking	Start to finish
45 min.	1 hour	50 min.	2 hours 35 min.

Step by step recipe

1	Wash 1 grapefruit and 1 orange, then slice thinly. It's no secret, a mandolin is the ideal tool for this. Lay in a large gratin dish and remove any pips.
2	Put 750 ml Poaching syrup in a saucepan and add 1 vanilla pod (split down the middle and scraped) and 2 stars anise. Bring to the boil.
3	Pour the boiling syrup over the citrus slices. Leave to poach for 1 hour.
4	After this time, drain the fruit thoroughly. Keep the syrup, as this can be reused next time or in another recipe.
5	Cut the slices in half and spread out on absorbant paper to dry..
6	Preheat the oven to 360°F (180°C). Roll out 250 g Sweetcrust pastry (pâte sablée) and line an 8-inch (20 cm) tin or ring.
7	Arrange the citrus slices in the pastry case.
8	Dot the top with knobs of 20 g butter and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons caster sugar. Bake for 15 minutes.
9	After 15 minutes, take the tart out of the oven and top for a second time with 20 g butter and 2 tablespoons caster sugar.
10	Put back in the oven for a further 25 minutes (or thereabouts).
11	Leave to cool completely before taking out of the ring or tin.

Remarks

In stage 5 you can cut the citrus slices into smaller pieces if you prefer, as this makes cutting the tart into potions easier.
Depending on the ripeness of your fruit, they may well produce more juice, even after poaching. To err on the safe side, use a tin or mould rather than a dessert ring in stage 6, to be sure any juice stays in the tart.
You can use any type of citrus fruit for this recipe, but it is important to choose organic, as the peel will be used.
The star anise can be replaced with cardamom, if you prefer.

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