Grandmother's cake,
custard tart

My grandmothers made many cakes but ... grandmother's cake, in my memory, they never prepared it for me!
After all, I myself have only discovered this very special tart filled with custard for about twenty years.

Still, it's very simple to prepare and it's always a hit.
So it could not miss in my collection of recipes!

Of course, loving tarts often made with very delicate shortbreads, I am almost ashamed to describe such a simple one, almost a shortcrust pastry enriched by an egg (where with that amount of flour I would have put at least four yolks!) And sugar.

Yet, the taste of the custard enhances the final taste of this tart, enriched on the lid by a sprinkling of pine nuts (I don't wear a few, others put them in thick). A cake so greedy that it is better to hide it, after cutting the necessary slices: otherwise it disappears!

And now, starting as always from the ingredients, let's start cooking!

Ingredients:

For the ingredients and the preparation of the custard I refer you to this page:
Grandmother's custard or Custard with whole eggs

Preparation:

 I recommend starting by preparing the custard and keeping it aside.

Then stick with the preparation of the shortcrust pastry: pour the sifted flour into a large bowl (or even directly on the kitchen surface), form a fountain and place the chopped cold butter in the center.

Mix them quickly with your fingertips so as not to leave dry flour.

(I have a little trick, for this phase: after weighing the butter and flour, cut the butter into small cubes and sprinkle it with some of the flour already weighed; then I leave it in the freezer for about twenty minutes. the butter and the rest of the flour in the mixer and I turn the blades for a minute at maximum speed: a perfect dough and still decidedly cold!)

Pour the mixture on the work surface (or in a large bowl), form a fountain and add the eggs, sugar, salt and lemon zest (and also wanting vanilla). (according to your taste, citrus peel and / or vanilla).

Knead quickly (the dough will appear crumbly and lumpy), collect it on the work surface by folding it on itself a couple of times, form a ball and leave it to rest in the fridge wrapped in plastic for an abundant hour.

At this point, if the custard had not yet been prepared ... this is the right time to make it!
Following your favorite recipe or with this

Take the dough from the fridge and divide it into two parts: a little more than half the dough for the base, the rest for the lid.

Roll out the two discs to a thickness of about three millimeters.

Arrange the base in the cake tin, prick it with a fork and keep it cool.

Spread the lid and keep it cool while filling the base with the custard.

Close the tart with the lid, sealing the edges well and garnish with the pine nuts.

Bake in a static oven at half height at 180 ° C for fifty minutes

(If the cake starts to darken too much during baking, you can cover it with aluminum foil.)

Remove from the oven and leave to cool on a wire rack;
as soon as possible, remove it from the pan, sprinkle with icing sugar and let it cool completely.

Now you just have to cut a slice and enjoy it.

Buon appetito!

ADVICES AND NOTES:

• Recipe, text only: to print or download.
• I often happen to prepare, the day before, both the shortcrust pastry and the custard; then I leave them in the fridge until ready to use them.
• There are also versions of this tart prepared without a lid and in which the pine nuts, very abundant, cover the custard.
• If some shortcrust remains, you can keep it in the fridge until the following day and use it for cupcakes or biscuits
• A short history: Torta della nonna is a typical Tuscan tart, filled with custard and covered with pine nuts and powdered sugar. Although it seems like an "ancient" dessert, it actually became popular more recently. It was invented around the 60s by Florentine chef Guido Samorini, who worked in a restaurant in Florence. According to history, Samorini created Torta della nonna as a solution for a simple dessert with a familiar flavor, using common ingredients such as shortcrust pastry, custard, and pine nuts. His invention quickly became popular and spread throughout Italy, becoming a typical dessert in home kitchens. Despite this recent origin, Torta della nonna is linked to older traditions of Tuscan and Italian cuisine. Elements such as shortcrust pastry and custard recall traditional Italian desserts, such as tarts or cream-filled cakes, which were already appreciated in the noble kitchens of the Renaissance. So, while it is “modern,” Torta della Nonna harks back to much older baking traditions, combining common Tuscan ingredients in a way that has created a dessert that is now loved everywhere.
• See also: The cake of Grandma Duck, Standard shortcrust pastry

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