Linzertorte

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27 July 2022 BY Julie Biuso
SERVES: 12

This is quite an astonishing tart. The original recipe can be traced to more than 300 years ago, to the town of Linz, Austria. When properly made, and kept cool, it can keep for about 2 weeks (a word of caution, heat and humidity work against it). This version was a specialty of my late German sister-in-law Dolores. She had a knack with sweet things. Linzertorte, or Linzer Torte, often has a lattice top, but this version has pastry stars. It is usually filled with gorgeous fruit preserves, but they are thin on the ground where I live given the current shipping crisis, so I have adapted the dish using a plum jam. And there was a surprise there. It’s made me reflect on why sugary trash is so bad, but that when sugar is used skillfully as in this dessert, it is a joy, an absolute treat, something to be treasured.

Ingredients

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50g (about 2 oz) dark bitter-sweet chocolate 200g (7 oz) standard flour 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp ground cinnamon Pinch of ground cloves 115g (4 oz) caster (superfine granulated) sugar 140g (5 oz) ground almonds or almond meal 1 tsp vanilla extract 1 large (size 7) free-range egg, at room temperature, lightly beaten 2 drops bitter almond oil, optional 120g (4 oz) unsalted butter, softened 1 Tbsp dark rum, optional 2 Tbsp Cassis, optional 400g (14 oz) jar redcurrant preserves or quality red fruit jam Sweetened condensed milk Icing sugar (confectioner's sugar) for dusting

Method

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1 Shave chocolate with a large sharp knife, then chop finely, almost to a powder. Sift flour, baking powder, ground cinnamon and ground cloves together. Stir through the sugar, ground almonds and chocolate. Mix the vanilla extract, and almond oil if using, with the egg. Add butter and egg mixture to dry ingredients and mash them together with the back of a large metal spoon. You need a bit of muscle power! Then, work it with your hands into a smooth ball. Flatten it into a large disc, about the size of a small dinner plate, and wrap in plastic wrap. Make room in the fridge for a baking tray (sheet) and lay the pastry on this and chill it for 1-2 hours, or until firm, though not hard.

2 Butter a 27cm (10”) loose-bottomed flan ring, then dust it out with flour and tap out the excess. Roll out dough on a floured surface and line it into the flan ring, building a rim of pastry at the top (if the pastry is very soft, just press it into the tin). *Read Recipe Notes below. Use the tines of a fork to mark a decorative edge on the rim of pastry (I forgot to do this!). Reroll scraps and cut into star shapes (you may need to repeat this to get enough stars). Refrigerate lined flan ring along with pastry stars until firm. Preheat oven to 175°C (350°F) and slip a baking tray (sheet) on the oven rack in the middle of the oven.

3 Remove lined flan ring from refrigerator and sprinkle the bottom with rum if using (I spread it with my fingers). Mix Cassis and jam together and spread it evenly over the pastry. Put the pastry stars on top of the tart and spoon a small dollop of condensed milk on each then gently spread the mixture with a small brush. You can also brush the pastry rim with condensed milk (I also forgot to do this in the photograph!).

4 Bake tart for 30-35 minutes, or until the pastry is golden and firm. Check with a skewer to see if it is cooked in the edges (insert skewer and if it comes out clean the tart is done). Leave in the flan ring until coolish, then cool completely on a cake rack. The tart can be baked several days ahead as it develops its flavor with time, but it must be kept in a cool, dry place.

Recipe Notes

The butter needs to be squishy soft, though not oiled. If you have a microwave, melt it in a bowl in 10 second increments, checking as you go. Alternatively, put butter in a bowl and leave it somewhere warmish to soften (again, don’t let it oil).

You could mix the pastry in a food processor, but it is very easy to overwork it and soften the chocolate, then you’ve got a sticky mess. I roll out the dough on a large lightly floured piece of baking (parchment) paper, covered with plastic wrap. I move the plastic wrap around once the dough gets large. Where do you get large pieces of baking paper? I buy commercial rolls of baking paper, the sort bakers use, from semi-wholesalers (Gulf Foods on Waiheke / Gilmours in Auckland, etc.) and although it is an expensive outlay, and a bulky thing to store, it is worth it as it makes lining baking trays (sheets) and roasting tins a doddle. Baking paper can be reused several times, simply wipe it clean with a damp cloth, let it dry and roll up and put away for next time.

The jam should fill the pastry case by no more than three-quarters full; it bubbles up as it cooks and could boil over if too full.

I didn’t have any almond oil so left it out and the pastry was fine without it (it deepens the almond flavour).

You only need a small amount of condensed milk. Keep the remainder refrigerated and use in other recipes.

Sliding the tart onto a heated baking tray in the oven ensures the pastry gets an immediate hot burst when it goes in which helps it cook through.