Orange Jam Tart

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Servings: 9 people

This jam tart is an old-fashioned jam tart with buttery shortcrust pastry. This one is made with a homemade orange jam that gives it a strong citrusy flavor with a slightly bitter aftertaste. If you like citrus desserts you'll love this one. And if you don't, you can simply fill the tart with any jam you like!

Ingredients:

OPTIONAL: Homemade Orange Jam:

1,2 kilogram oranges thin skinned
1 lemon
1,2 kilograms sugar

For The Jam Tart:

200 grams butter at room temperature
90 grams sugar
1 medium-sized egg
0,5 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 tablespoons milk
½ teaspoon baking powder
350 grams all-purpose flour
600 grams homemade orange jam or any other jam of your preference
OPTIONAL: icing sugar to serve with

Directions:

To Make The Homemade Orange Jam:

Prepare the fruit: Wash the oranges and lemon. And scrub their skin. Cut off the ends of both the oranges and the lemon. Then cut the fruit in half. Cut each half into 4.
Soak the fruit: Add the fruit to a large plastic or glass bowl. Cover with 3 liters of cold water and place a weight such as a plate to sink the fruit underwater. Soak like this at room temperature for 24 hours.
Puree the fruit: Drain the fruit in a strainer and remove any seeds. Add to a food processor in batches and pulse until they look like a grainy paste.
Weigh the fruit: The ratio of fruit to sugar should be 1:1. So for every cup of pureed fruit you will need 1 cup sugar.
Make The Jam: Add both the sugar and fruit to a thick-bottomed cooking pot. Add also 1 cup of water (240 ml) (if you divide the recipe by half use only ½ cup of water). Stir well to combine and then bring to a gentle simmer. Cook over low heat, uncovered, for about an hour. Stirring frequently and especially when the jam starts to thicken so it won't stick to the bottom. Weigh the jam that's needed for the recipe and set it aside to cool. Store the remaining jam while it's still hot in sterilized canning jars.

To Make The Jam Tart:

Preheat oven to 340°F / 170°C.
Combine flour and baking powder in a bowl and set aside.
Add butter and sugar to your mixer's bowl and with the paddle attachment on beat for 4 minutes over medium speed.
Add the egg and mix to incorporate.
Add the vanilla, salt, and milk. Mix until combined.
Add the flour in gradually and once fully incorporated turn off the mixer.
Rest dough: Shape the dough into a round ball and wrap it in plastic wrap. Place in the fridge for 1 hour.
Roll the dough: Take about ⅔ of the dough and shape it into a round ball. Add the remaining ⅓ back into the fridge. Using a rolling pin, roll open the dough ball on a piece of parchment paper. Open to a large 30 cm round disk. Gently roll the dough loosely around the rolling pin. And then unroll it over the tart pan. Or transfer the dough using the parchment paper and swiftly overlap over the tart tin. Use a 28 cm (11-inch) tart pan.
Make the tart: Press the dough firmly into the bottom of the pan and up the sides. Trim any excess dough. Prick the bottom of the dough with a fork a few times. Then add the cooled jam and spread it evenly with a spoon.
Make the topping: Take small pieces of the leftover dough, shape them into balls, and then into cords. Pat lightly each cord with your fingertips to flatten it slightly. Then place it on top of the pie criss-cross to create a latticework.
Bake: Bake the tart for about 35 to 40 minutes until golden on top.
Serve: Serve topped with icing sugar or a scoop of ice cream or Greek yogurt.

Tips & Notes:

Jam Quantity: There will be plenty of leftover jam if you follow the recipe quantities. I thought since you are making the effort, you would like to have an extra jar (plus a bit more) of jam to keep. If not, cut down the recipe by half.
To Check If The Jam Is Ready: Place a small plate in the fridge for a couple of hours then use it to check if the jam has reached the right consistency. Add a small spoonful of the hot jam to the cold plate. The jam will cool and should look like a slightly runny soft gel.
Making Ahead: As for making the tart ahead of time, simply cover it with plastic wrap and then in an airtight bag. Place either in the fridge if you're planning on baking it within the next 2 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Since there will be plenty of leftover jam, you can double or triple the ingredients for the tart dough and make more than one tart. Or even make individual ones.
Freezing: orange Jam tart freezes beautifully. Whether you want to keep leftovers or make it ahead of time you can surely do so. For leftovers, place them in an airtight food container and store them for up to 2 months. You needn't reheat them simply leave them at room temperature to unfreeze slowly. So it won't ruin the texture of the tart.
Storing: Since this is a cookie crust and jam tart you can store it at room temperature for up to 2 weeks. Or even longer it won't spoil. But the flavor won't be as good as before. To store it at room temperature just keep it in an airtight food container so the crust keeps nice and fresh.