Pineapple Tarts

No way I am getting away with NOT baking pineapple tarts!
It happens to be my mum's all time favourite.
But at least now I don't have to make the jam anymore, it is easily available at all supermarkets and
baking goods shops. One less chore for me!

Through out the years, my mum and I experimented with a lot of recipes for pineapple tarts.
Once upon a time ago, we even made our own jam. Yep buy by the lorry load from the market.
Peel, slice and then grate it all before the slow process of cooking the jam. Let me tell you, if my poor fingers could talk, they'd probably tell you how many times they got burnt and oh... the jam too, occasionally!

We did the pineapple tarts, the ones where you just use a cookie cutter and press the jam on top, another version was clipping the edges finely! Hated that one!
There was the one shaped like a pineapple, hmm... if my poor thumbs could speak! I endured painful fingers holding that tiny scissors clipping away the pattern of the fruit! Then came the pain staking process of shoving a clove as stem of the fruit!  Horrible! I hated that one even more.

I must have made close to a million of these tarts, for sale and our own consumption. Frankly it is not my favourite kuih raya.

Then one fine day, we discovered the nastar or pineapple roll. I love this, easy and fast. The hard part is rolling the jam into small balls and of course refilling the mould! I have several moulds but strangely I just like one, it is my favourite one and works wonderfully! But after a few hundred, favourite or not, my poor thumbs ache!

Here are some of the types of moulds that can be used for this recipe, just use the one that you are comfortable with.

The recipe I have is by Amy Beh from her book At home with Amy Beh (vol 1)
I didn't follow the recipe for the jam as I bought mine. Roll the jam into small balls, believe me it makes life with the pineapple tarts a whole lot easier!!

pic courtesy of Google.











Pineapple Tarts
source: Amy Beh

Ingredients
Pastry
150g buter
100g margarine
75g icing sugar
2 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt (I didn't add this)

350g all purpose flour
100g corn flour

For the glaze: (I didn't follow this, I egg washed mine with just a whole egg and a bit of water)
1 egg yolk
1 tsp condensed milk
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp water


Method
In a bowl, combine both butter and margarine with the icing sugar.
Beat in the yolks. Add in vanilla.
Gradually add in both flours until it becomes a firm dough.

Put enough dough into the mould and using both thumbs, gently press it out.
Leave about a few inches long, enough to put the balls of jam and to roll later.
After rolling the dough with the jam, cut off the excess and place on a well greased
baking tray.
Brush lightly with the egg wash and bake for 15-20 min at 175C or until golden brown.

Once cooked allow to cool before removing from baking tray.
Sometimes, the egg wash makes the cookie stick to the tray, using a butter knife gently pry it from the
tray. Be careful, the tart is fragile at this point and breaks easily.

The balls of pineapple jam

Pipe out the stripes of dough and place the ball of jam and roll.

Place them on the baking tray and brush the egg wash.

Bake until golden brown - yummy!

Happy Baking.