Rustic Rum Walnut Tart, encased in a leftover puff pastry with a creamy mascarpone rum filling and lots of walnuts is simple, yet Patisserie tasting.
Why Is This Rum Walnut Tart Rustic?
The holidays have just passed and I’ve been busy for months making fancy, complex or specialty desserts.
Now, I just wanted something simple, not too sweet and a way to use up many leftover ingredients I bought throughout the season.
Rustic, to me, denotes ‘not fancy’ yet just as comforting to eat, sometimes even more.
It doesn’t sit up high, it isn’t made with a homemade crust, it isn’t colorful or chocolatey.
It is, however, the perfect quiet nibble for an afternoon tea on a January day, or a not-so-sweet dessert while decluttering holiday decorations.
Creamy Rum Tart
I have found that the easiest, and quickest custard to mix for a tart or custard pie is simply:
- Mascarpone – A creamier, less acidic choice over cream cheese.
- Eggs – Just a few to hold the custard together (or egg substitutes).
- Sugar – Not much, just a tablespoon.
- Rum – The sweetest of a booze, in my opinion, without dipping into liqueurs.
That’s it! Whisk these together, pour into any crust (or no crust and just a ramekin cup), add whatever you want on top and bake.
If nuts are not your thing, apples, pears, or any dried fruit is lovely with this custard as well.
Pecan Almond or Walnut Tart
Having grown up in a Mediterranean influenced home, where many recipes are made with nuts, I usually gravitate to using them in sweet or savory dishes:
- Baklawa (Baklava) – Layers of nuts, between phyllo dough and drizzled with honey
- Grandma’s Bourbon Pecan Pie – Pecans, being very American, my mom still managed to give them a Mediterranean twist in both the crust and the filling
- Fesenjan Chicken Walnut Stew – A savory Persian richly steeped in both flavor and tradition
For this reason, while my pantry lacks canned goods (preferring fresh), I always have a large assortment of nuts and flours made from nuts.
Nutty Pie Crusts
When I am making the crust for a tart or pie, I usually use crushed pecans, almonds or walnuts in my homemade crusts.
My blog collection of recipes for pie or tart crusts if filled with nut additions:
- Easy No-Roll Pie Crust – A crust with a cookie-like texture, made of nuts and oats
- Quick Crust Sweet Potato Pie Recipe – Loaded with nuts in the crust to give texture to the sweet potato custard
- Almond Crust Chocolate Pie – A silky chocolate custard in a chocolate almond crust
- Nut Crust Blueberry Pie – Summer’s best fruit pie crust
How To Make Rustic Rum Walnut Tart
First we need a tart crust and for this recipe I am using a puff pastry, simply because when you thaw them, often there are two in the package.
I had that second pastry sitting in my fridge waiting to be used, so I rolled it out and plopped it into a small sheet pan, lined with parchment paper.
Secondly, I whisked the mascarpone, eggs, sugar and rum together and set it aside.
Then, I smashed some walnuts, stirred in a little sugar, mace and cardamom and whisked it into the creamy mixture.
Lastly, simply pour the mixture into the pastry, bake, slice and dust a little confection sugar on top. A light dusting of snow on a January day, I like to call it!
Equipment Needed
- Parchment paper
- Small sheet pan
- Rolling pin
- Medium bowl
- Whisk
- Zip bag – to crush the nuts
- Measuring spoons
- Knife
- Oven
Ingredients Needed
- Puff pastry
- Mascarpone
- Eggs
- Sugar
- Rum
- Walnuts
- Mace
- Cardamom
- Dusting sugar
Rustic Rum Walnut Tart
Equipment
- Sheet pan
- Parchment paper
Ingredients
- 1 Puff pastry sheet
- 8 oz Mascarpone or cream cheese
- 2 Eggs
- 2 tbsp Sugar
- 1 shot Rum (3 tbsp)
- 1/2 cup Walnuts
- 1/4 tsp Mace or nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp Cardamom
- 1 tbsp Powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400
- Roll out the thawed puff pastry on a sheet of parchment paper, almost to the edges. Place the parchment paper, with the pastry, onto a sheet pan. Fold about an inch of the edges around the pastry, and pinch them to form an edge that sits up about half inch.
- In a zip bag or dish towel, place the walnuts and crush them a little, or simply roll over them with the rolling pin to break them into pieces. Place the rough chopped walnuts into a small bowl along with 1 tablespoon of sugar and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the mascarpone, eggs, remaining sugar and rum together until creamy. Pour the walnut mixture into the creamy mixture and give a stir. Pour this mixture into the prepared pastry and place in the hot oven for 5 minutes.
- Turn down the oven to 350 and finish baking until the crust is golden and the filling is firm, about another 20 minutes.
- Once cooled, slice and dust with powdered sugar.
Video
I believe the table... that place that draws people to gather, is the most powerful symbol of togetherness. All that happens before the table is set, the planning, the gathering, the preparing, are all an intricate part of the dance that create the mood of celebration to share with friends and loved ones.