Earl Grey Cream Tart

Happy May!

Wow, where did the time go? Almost half the year gone in a blink of an eye, and I can feel it’s just going to keep getting busier for me in the next little while.

If you know me well, you’ll realize that my favourite tea flavours are matcha and earl grey. This past Easter, I decided to do an Earl Grey Cream tart, inspired by The Pie Hole in Los Angeles.

My love affair with Earl Grey tea dates back to when I discovered the London Fog (which is a tea latte drink). The aroma of citrusy bergamot always lifts my mood, which I find comforting especially on a rainy day.

I’m a girl who loves strong, bold flavours, and I hate it when you get something advertised as a certain taste but falls completely flat… or only has a “hint” of that flavour. Well, not with this tart.

MY VERSION OF EARL GREY CREAM TART

This Earl Grey cream tart has:

• an all-butter crust,
• filled with a strong and rich silky smooth earl grey pastry cream,
• topped with a bergamot whipped cream and some fresh raspberries for accent.

It’s surprisingly not too heavy of a dessert, and is relatively easy to make — you just need to plan accordingly. The Earl Grey pastry cream can be made 2 days ahead so that you’re not rushing to get everything done in one day.

HOW TO MAKE THE CRUST

To make the tart crust, simply combine all the ingredients in a food processor, and blitz a few times until it comes together, like how I made the pastry for these Pop Tarts.

Dump the contents onto a piece of parchment and form into a disc. Let it chill in the fridge for 2 hours or you can make this ahead of time as well.

When I pulled out this Easter dessert from the fridge — my sons clamoured around and ooohed at it. Mainly for the whipped cream 😉

MY OTHER EARL GREY RECIPES

It’s a delicious way to end a meal, or enjoy as an afternoon snack. If you’re into Earl Grey tea, check out my

• Earl Grey Ice Cream,
• Blackberry Earl Grey Roll Cake,
• Bergamot Earl Grey Loaf,
• Earl Grey Chocolate Sheet Cake, or
• Earl Grey Milk Jam

And as always, if you make one of my recipes, let me know! Tag me on Instagram @siftandsimmer or leave me a comment below.

Print Pin

Earl Grey Cream Tart 

Rich, creamy earl grey cream fills a pastry tart, topped off with a bergamot whipped cream.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword cream, earl grey, pastry, tart, tea

Prep Time 2 hours

Cook Time 45 minutes

Total Time 2 hours 45 minutes

Servings 1 x 8" tart

Author Michelle | Sift & Simmer

Ingredients

Tart Shell

• 1 C all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp granulated cane sugar
• 6 Tbsp cold salted butter cubed
• 3 Tbsp ice water

Earl Grey Cream

• 1 C whole milk
• ½ C coconut milk (canned) or use heavy cream
• 3 Earl Grey tea bags
• 3 egg yolks
• 5 Tbsp granulated sugar
• 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp cornstarch
• pinch sea salt
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• ¼ tsp bergamot oil culinary

Bergamot Whipped Cream

• 1 C heavy whipping cream
• 1-2 Tbsp powdered sugar
• ½ tsp bergamot oil culinary

Instructions

Tart Shell:

• Add all the ingredients (except ice water) into a food processor. Pulse intermittently until the butter is the size of small peas. Gradually add in the ice water while pulsing. Stop when the dough roughly comes together.
• Dump the dough contents onto a large piece of parchment paper and press together to form a disc of dough. Wrap it up and place into the refrigerator for at least 2 hours to chill.
• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Lightly flour your work surface and rolling pin and roll the dough to a thickness of about ⅛".
• Transfer the rolled out dough to a tart pan with a removable bottom. Press in the dough on the bottom and up along the sides so it's even.
• At this point, you can place it into the freezer for 15 minutes or into the fridge to chill. Chilling helps prevent too much shrinkage when it gets baked.
• When ready to bake, remove tart from the freezer.
• Place a crumpled piece of parchment paper on top of the tart dough and add pie weights on top of the parchment (or use dried beans, rice, etc).
• Bake at 400°F for 15 mins. Remove the pie weights from the tart, prick the  dough with the tines of a fork, and continue baking for another 15 mins. Remove from oven and let cool completely before filling.

Earl Grey Cream:

• Combine whole milk and coconut milk together in a small saucepan. Heat gently over low-medium heat until almost at a simmer. Add in the Earl Grey tea bags and remove from heat. Let it steep for 10 minutes.
• In a medium glass bowl, add the egg yolks, sugar, flour, cornstarch, salt, and vanilla extract. Whisk everything together.
• Use a spatula to gently press on the Earl Grey tea bags to extract as much tea and remove the tea bags.
• Return the tea-steeped cream onto the stove and turn the heat back onto medium. Heat the cream until it's almost at a simmer.
• While whisking the egg mixture, gradually drizzle in the hot tea-cream as to not scramble the eggs. This is known as tempering the eggs.
• When all the cream has been added to the eggs, pour the mixture back into the saucepan and continue to whisk until the cream begins to thicken, about 5 minutes over low-medium heat.
• Once thickened, remove the pastry cream, stir in the bergamot oil and chill over an ice bath.
• Transfer to a clean bowl and place a piece of plastic wrap over top of the pastry cream. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 1-2 hours.

Bergamot Whipped Cream:

• Chill a large bowl and wire whisk in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes prior.
• Add in the heavy whipping cream and whisk until bubbles form. Add in the powdered sugar and continue to whisk until soft peaks. Add in bergamot oil and continue whisking until almost stiff.

To assemble:

• Spread the chilled Earl Grey pastry cream onto the cooled tart shell. Use an offset spatula to spread the cream evenly.
• Fill a pastry bag with the bergamot whipped cream and use a star tip to pipe the cream on top of the tart. Serve chilled.