Love it or hate it, that time of year is upon us. That time where we have to dig out the red lipstick, don something more respectable than sweats and invite people over. It's the holidays and you want to be slightly impressive. Impressive with both the red lipstick and the food offering. So I suggest you try this blueberry tart. It's delicious. And fresh. All the while still being sufficiently indulgent enough to call it dessert. Basically it's a multi-tasker. The very best kind and one that is dreamy beyond compare.
Blueberries and rosemary are a match made in heaven. In heaven I tell you. Get baking. Preferably in the red lipstick just to give the whole process a sense of occasion.
Ingredients
1-2 sprigs rosemary
1 eggwhite
60g caster sugar
500g blueberries
¼ cup dried blueberries
1 cup thick yoghurt
1 tbsp honey
Spelt pastry
2 cups spelt flour, cold
1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
2/3 cup butter, cubed
pinch sea salt flakes
3 tbsp sugar (use caster or rapadura)
5-7 tbsp ice water
Method
Brush the rosemary sprigs with eggwhite, pulling at the individual leaves so they are covered then sprinkle with caster sugar. Place on a baking paper lined tray and set aside for 12 hours or overnight to dry.
Grease and line a loose bottomed pie tin (I used a 23cm tin but there is enough pastry for a 28cm tin).
For the pastry add the flour, vanilla bean seeds, butter, salt and sugar to a food processor and pulse until a crumble mixture is achieved. Add the ice water slowly as needed until the mixture is just coming together. You don't want to overwork the dough. Once combined, turn out and form a disc. Cover in plastic wrap and rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Remove the pastry from the fridge and roll it out between 2 sheets of baking paper until it is about ½ cm thick then line your tart tin with it, gently pressing it in. Allow to rest again for 20-30 minutes then cover with baking paper and pastry weights and blind bake (12-15 minutes). Remove weights and bake until nice and golden (7-10 minutes), then cool completely.
When ready to serve smear the yoghurt over the base and drizzle over the honey. Top with the fresh and dried blueberries then scatter over crystallised rosemary. To serve, cut indecent sized slices with a sharp knife. Best served on day of making.