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Ingredients
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Pastry Shell
Custard Filling (Very Good Cream)
Method
Pastry Shell
- 1
Make the dough
In a large bowl, whisk together 1.5 cups flour, 2 tablespoons sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Add 1/2 cup cold, cubed unsalted butter. Use a pastry cutter or your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until mixture resembles coarse crumbs with some pea-sized pieces remaining.
- 2
- 3
Blind-bake the shell
Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). On a lightly floured surface, roll chilled dough into a 12-inch circle about 1/8 inch thick. Transfer to a 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom, pressing dough evenly into the sides and trimming the edge. Chill tart shell in the refrigerator 15 minutes. Line shell with parchment and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 15 minutes, remove weights and parchment, prick base lightly with a fork, and bake 8–10 more minutes until lightly golden. Reduce oven to 350°F (175°C). Let shell cool slightly while preparing custard.
Custard Filling (Very Good Cream)
- 4
Warm the dairy
In a medium saucepan, combine 2 cups whole milk, 1/2 cup heavy cream, and the scraped seeds of 1 vanilla bean (or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract). Heat over medium until just below simmer (steam and tiny bubbles at edges), stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and let sit 5 minutes to infuse.
- 5
Whisk eggs and dry ingredients
In a bowl, whisk together 4 egg yolks, 1 whole egg, 3/4 cup granulated sugar, 2 teaspoons cornstarch, and 1/8 teaspoon salt until smooth and slightly pale.
- 6
Temper and thicken
Slowly pour about 1/3 of the hot milk mixture into the egg mixture, whisking constantly to temper. Continue pouring in half of the remaining milk while whisking, then return the tempered egg mixture to the saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a heatproof spatula, until mixture thickens enough to coat the spatula (170–175°F / 77–80°C), about 4–6 minutes. Do not boil.
- 7
Finish the cream
Remove from heat and whisk in 1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter until smooth. If you used a vanilla bean split, discard the pod. Taste and adjust sweetness or vanilla if needed.
- 8
Strain and fill
Strain the custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean bowl to remove any cooked egg bits. Pour the warm custard into the pre-baked tart shell, smoothing the top. Lightly grate a pinch (about 1/4 teaspoon) of nutmeg over the surface if desired.
- 9
Bake to set
Bake tart at 350°F (175°C) for 20–25 minutes, until the custard is just set — center should have a slight wobble. Remove from oven and cool on a rack for 1 hour, then refrigerate at least 2 hours (preferably overnight) to fully chill and set.
- 10