Coconut Raspberry Jam Tarts

Break time does not get much better than with these Coconut Raspberry Jam tarts.  They seem like they would take much longer than they do.

The delicious pastry can be made in a food processor.  The filling is made as the dough chills.

This is a classic recipe.  There are many slight variations on it, but I have been making this one since I was eight years old using frozen tart shells, so that would be about 28 years ago.  ???? or so. 

These are very simple and even easier if you use frozen tart shells, but they are already so simple and this is a nice pastry.

Give the pastry dough plenty of time to rest.

Most of the sweet taste of this tart comes from the jam.  

I think this is a good jam to crust ratio if using my pastry recipe, but you could use a bit more or less.

Make sure to use unsweetened coconut or you may find this too sweet.

I use fine coconut, not medium or grated because it gives the kind of texture that I don’t really like. That is more personal.  It also makes the eating part a bit messy.

These are similar to the South African Hertzoggie or Hertzog Cookie.

Coconut Jam tarts are popular in Scotland, England, Belize, and my place.

How To Make Coconut Jam Tarts

For the Tart Shells

1. Combine the flour, icing sugar and salt together.

2. Cut in the cold butter or pulse in a food processor until the butter is very small like little peas.

3. Whisk the yolk with enough water to equal ¼ cup and add the vinegar.

4. Add the liquid to the flour mixture and pulse or mix lightly until it starts to clump.

5. Dump it all in a mixing bowl and bring it together using your hands.

6. Flatten the dough between plastic wrap or similar and refrigerate for about an hour.

This allows the glutens to rest making it easier to roll and shape because the dough won’t keep pulling back on you.

You can use a muffin tin or individual tart tins.  Cut rounds that are an inch in diameter larger than your tart tins.

7. Roll the pastry and use the cutters to measure how many you will get out of your rolled dough. 

I usually make sure I can get ten, then know that I will reroll what is left and I am sure that I will get two more out of the scraps.

Before the final roll, before cutting, I make sure the bottom of the dough is well floured, or at least not stuck.  This will keep them from sticking after baking as well.

8. Cut 12 rounds, unless you are making minis, then cut 24.

9. Lift the dough round and place it into the tart tin pressing up the sides.  

10. Dock the tart shells with a fork

11. Spoon ½ tsp of jam into each tart shell if making minis, ¾ tsp for regular.

12. Freeze the tart shells.

This will help the shell to not shrink too much, and the jam won’t slide around when you add the rest of the filling.

For the Filling

1. Cream the butter and sugar. Scrape the bowl after the addition of each new ingredient.

2. Add the eggs one at a time, making sure that the first one is completely incorporated before beating in the next.

3. Beat in the vanilla and the coconut.

4. Fill the tarts almost full.  This will puff up a bit, then it will shrink a bit.

5. I baked them on a lower rack, but not the bottom rack.

425°F (220°C) for about 7 minutes

350°F (180°C) for about 25 minutes for 12 larger tarts, about 17 minutes for minis.

Dust with powdered icing sugar and a little bit of jam.