Guava Coconut Tart
You guys know how much I love The Great British Baking Show. Well, a few weeks ago one of the challenges was to make citrus tart topped with meringue and they all looked amazing! As usual, it got my brain working on what I could make. I have some guava paste sitting around with no real idea how I was going to use it, it just seemed interesting. So then I thought, I wonder if I could make a guava curd with that paste? So I went to work! I made a “short crust” like they did on the episode. Then I set out to make a curd similar to how I made the passionfruit curd in my Passionfruit Chocolate Tart. The first time I made this, Derek had some friends over. Well, I realized that the amount of curd I had wouldn’t completely fill the tart but also that any more of it would just be too much guava. I scrambled to figure out something I could layer on top. I saw we had coconut and white chocolate, so white chocolate ganache with coconut in it, why not? It was fabulous! The version I’m sharing has more lime and it’s incredible!
Let’s get our tart on!
You’ll start by making the dough for the crust. Mix together the flour and powdered sugar in a bowl. Cut your butter into small cubes and mix to coat them with the flour sugar mixture.
Then pinch the butter cubes with your hands until it is mixed in and is in clumps no larger than peas.
Next gradually add the water until the dough comes together. Shape it into a ball and flatten.
Wrap that in plastic wrap and chill for thirty minutes.
Preheat your oven to 375° and take the dough out of the fridge.
Roll the dough out on a floured surfaces to about an 1/8″ thick.
You’re going to “blind bake” the crust, so place the dough in your tart pan. I used this rectangular pan, but you can also use a circular tart pan. Now place the dough in the pan and press it into the edges. Leave the extra dough hung over the edges, you’ll cut that off later.
Then put parchment paper over the dough and pour in pie weights or dried beans (that’s what I use). Doing this will ensure the crust doesn’t puff up when it bakes. Put the tart pan on a cookie sheet.
Now bake the dough for 20 minutes. After taking the crust out, remove the parchment paper and pie weights and put it back in the oven. Bake another five to seven minutes or until the crust is golden brown.
Cut off the crust that overhangs the edge.
Let the crust cool and now you’ll work on the guava curd. Whisk together the egg yolks (save the whites, you’ll be using those later for the meringue) and sugar in a small saucepan.
Add the lime juice and guava paste.
I found the guava paste at a local fruit market. You may also be able to find it at a Mexican market and it’s available on Amazon. Mash the paste into the mixture with a potato masher or fork until it’s smooth.
Then cook over medium heat for a few minutes, or the curd is thickened and coats the back of a rubber spatula. Take it off the heat and stir in the pieces of butter one at a time until the butter is melted.
Now pour the curd through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl. Sometimes when making curd, some of the eggs can scramble, so you’re just straining any of that out.
Now pour the curd into the crust and spread to even it out. Put that in the fridge to chill for about an hour so that it will set.
Once the curd is set, it’s time to make the ganache and coconut layer (this is my favorite part!). Put the white chocolate and lime juice in a medium heatproof bowl.
Now heat the heavy cream over medium until it bubbles.
Pour the hot cream over the white chocolate and lime juice and stir until the white chocolate is melted and smooth. If there are still chunks, put the mixture over a double boiler for a minute.
Once the ganache is smooth, add the coconut and stir until it’s completely mixed in.
Now take the tart out of the fridge and spread the coconut and ganache mixture into the tart. Let that chill at least 2 hours.
On to the final step, the meringue! The meringue will start to weep after it’s on the tart and in the fridge for two hours, so I recommend trying to add it to the tart less than two hours before serving. Add the egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar to the bowl of your stand mixer or other heatproof bowl.
Whisk to combine it. Heat about an inch of water in a pan that the mixing bowl will fit over. Once the water is simmering, place the mixing bowl over it and whisk until the sugar is melted and the mixture is warming foamy, about three minutes.
Now take it off the heat and using the whisk attachment of your mixer, beat it until stiff peaks form, which should be about five minutes. Beat in the vanilla.
Now you’ll put the meringue on the tart. I put it in a piping bag and piped it on in a design to make it look nice. You can also just spread it out in a neat pattern, whatever works for you.
To brown the meringue, I use my fun kitchen torch but if you don’t have one of those heat the broiler in your oven. It will only take a couple of minutes to get the meringue a lovely golden brown.
Slice and enjoy! This tart is something different and I guarantee it’ll be a hit with your friends and family. The guava with the lime and coconut has a lovely tropical flavor and the smooth curd with the coconut and fluffy meringue makes for all sorts of interesting textures.
It may seem like a lot of steps, but I hope you try this tart. It’s totally worth the effort, I promise!
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Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 9 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
- 3-6 tablespoons cold water
- 1/2 cup guava paste
- 6 large egg yolks
- 1/2 cup sugar
- juice of 1 medium lime
- 1 stick unsalted butter cut into 8 pieces
- 1 cup white chocolate
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1 1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut
- juice of 1 medium lime
- 6 egg whites
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Mix together the flour and powdered sugar in a bowl. Cut butter into small cubes and mix to coat them with the flour sugar mixture.
- Pinch the butter cubes with your hands until it is mixed in and is in clumps no larger than peas. Then gradually add the water until the dough comes together. Shape into a disc and wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375° and take the dough out of the fridge.
- Roll the dough out on a floured surfaces to about an 1/8" thick and place the dough in the pan and press it into the edges. Leave the extra dough hung over the edges.
- Put parchment paper over the dough and pour in pie weights or dried beans and put the tart pan on a cookie sheet.
- Bake the dough for 20 minutes. Take it out of the oven and remove the parchment paper and pie weights and put it back in the oven. Bake another 5-7 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Cut off the crust that overhangs the edge.
- Whisk together the egg yolks and sugar in a small saucepan. Add the lime juice and guava paste. Mash the paste into the mixture with a potato masher or fork until it's smooth.
- Cook over medium heat for a few minutes, or the curd is thickened and coats the back of a rubber spatula. Take it off the heat and stir in the pieces of butter one at a time until it's melted.
- Pour the curd through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl.
- Pour the strained curd into the crust and spread to even it out. Put that in the fridge to chill for about an hour to set.
- Put the white chocolate and lime juice in a medium heatproof bowl. Heat the heavy cream over medium heat until it bubbles. Pour the hot cream over the white chocolate and lime juice and stir until the white chocolate is melted and smooth. If there are still chunks, put the mixture over a double boiler for a minute. Once smooth, add the coconut and stir until it's completely mixed in.
- Take the tart out of the fridge and spread the coconut and ganache mixture into the tart. Let that chill at least 2 hours.
- Add the egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar to the bowl of a stand mixer or other heatproof bowl. Whisk to combine it. Heat about an inch of water in a pan that the mixing bowl will fit over.
- Place the mixing bowl over it and whisk until the sugar is melted and the mixture is warm and foamy, about three minutes. Take it off the heat and using the whisk attachment of your mixer, beat it until stiff peaks form, which should be about 5 minutes. Beat in the vanilla.
- Pipe or spread the meringue on in a neat pattern.
- Brown the meringue under the broiler or with kitchen torch.
- Slice and serve.