Blackberry cottage tart recipe
In the southwest of England, two miles upriver from Dartmouth, the River Dart swells to a mile wide at the village of Dittisham, known by locals as Dit’sum. The Dimbleby family had been taking holidays there for several years before I married David. They had an old bungalow at the water’s edge with a breathtaking view and a large, steep plum orchard behind, but by 1977 David and I had three young children, his brothers had also started families and his sister would soon follow. The bungalow simply wouldn’t take all of us. So when the old lady who lived next door died, we bought the dilapidated property along with its orchard which was densely overgrown with brambles.
The village builders got to work and a year later we had an extended cottage that slept ten, a level terrace and lawn above the orchard, and a magnificent view of the river.
Before long, the making of fruit puddings, pies, tarts, ice creams, jams and jellies dominated my Devon life. And when the few remaining brambles bore large, juicy fruit, we decided to re-name the cottage Blackberry Cottage.
Ingredients
- 175 g strong white bread flour
- 50 g golden caster sugar
- 100 g butter
- 1 lemon, finely grated rind and juice
- 300 ml soured cream
- 500 g large blackberries
- 4 tbsp blackberry or blackcurrant jelly
Details
- Cuisine: British
- Recipe Type: Dessert
- Difficulty: Medium
- Preparation Time: 40 mins
- Cooking Time: 40 mins
- Serves: 8
Step-by-step
- To make the pastry, sift the flour and sugar into a bowl and make a well in the middle. Gently melt the butter in a saucepan over a low heat with the grated lemon rind and juice, then pour into the flour mixture and mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon until you have a smooth dough.
- Using your hands, press the warm dough over the bottom and up the sides of a 24-25cm loose-based flan tin to line it, pressing a rolling pin over the top to neaten the edge. Lightly prick the base of the pastry with a fork and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
- Heat the oven to 200°C/Gas 6. Lay a piece of baking parchment in the pastry case, fill with dried beans or rice, and bake blind in the centre of the oven for 20-25 minutes until the edges are pale golden. Remove the paper and beans. Pour the soured cream into the pastry case and bake for 10 minutes. Place the tart on a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
- No longer than 2 hours before eating, arrange the blackberries on the tart. Warm the jelly with the lemon juice in a pan over a low heat, stirring until smooth, then slowly spoon it over the berries. Leave until the jelly is cold.
- To unmould, carefully push up the base to release the tart from the side of the tin. Now, using a thin metal spatula, ease the tart off the base onto a large serving plate; if you find this difficult, just keep it on the base. Leave in a cool place, but not in the fridge, until ready to eat.
Taken from Orchards in the Oasis by Josceline Dimbleby. Published by Quadrille.
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