Recipe: Pineapple Coconut Tartlet

Let the buttery almond shortcrust crust pastry of this tangy tropical tartlet take you on vacation in your home kitchen. German-born pastry chef Arne Riehn has kindly shared this step-by-step recipe with photos to make it easy for anyone to bake.

Arne, who is both Pastry Chef and Sous Chef at Bangkok’s IGNIV, recommends measuring out all your ingredients before starting. Baking is, after all, as much science as it is art and precision matters when making pastry.

When choosing a pineapple, smell the base to find one that is fragrant. If there is no smell it might not be ripe. The skin should be very yellow and the flesh firm but not rock hard.

RECIPE

Serves: 6

Time: 90 minutes, but pastry needs to be made 1 day ahead

Short pastry

~ Ingredients ~

• 250g flour
• 30g almond meal
• 150g butter
• 95g icing sugar
• 58g egg yolk
• 1g fine salt
• Vanilla pod

~ Method ~

1. Mix the flour, almond meal, icing sugar, vanilla and salt in a bowl. Add the butter in small, cold cubes and mix until you achieve a gritty, sand consistency.
2. Then add the egg yolk and mix well.
3. Press the final dough into a flat, fat rectangle and place in the fridge overnight.
4. The next day, gently flatten the dough out with a rolling pin until it is around 2mm thick. Place the flattened dough between two sheets of baking paper and return to the fridge for 1 hour.
5. On a cold surface (like a marble slab, if possible) cut out the base to match your small tart ring (8cm)
6. Cut strips approximately 26cm long and 3cm to line the sides. Place these in the tart ring and carefully press the side and base with your fingers to connect them.
7. Slice any excess dough from the top with a knife. 
8. Prick holes in the base with a fork and place tart shells in the freezer for one hour.
9. Preheat your oven to 175°C and bake for 15 minutes.
10. Baste the tarts with egg yolk and then bake for another 5 minutes.
11. Leave to cool completely.

Coconut Pineapple Tartlet Filling

~ Ingredients ~

• ½ medium-sized pineapple, sliced into fine cubes
• 150g sugar
• 100g coconut cream
• 6 little sponge cakes (If on hand)
• 1 mature coconut (or 150g pre-grated desiccated coconut)

~ Method ~

1. Caramelize the sugar in a heavy, high-sided pan over a low to medium heat. Stir the sugar constantly for 8-10 minutes until it turns a caramel color.
2. Add the coconut cream bit-by-bit, mixing to combine. 
3. Reduce the caramelized cream until it binds and then add the pineapple cubes.
4. Let the tart filling cool on a flat tray in the fridge for 30 minutes.
5. Crack open the coconut and place it in the fridge too. Skip this step if you substitute for desiccated coconut.
6. To assemble, place a slice of sponge cake shaped to fit inside each tartlet shell (if using). 
7. Pour over the pineapple and coconut cream filling. 
8. Top with a generous amount of grated coconut.

If you love this recipe, check out Pastry Chef Arne’s Caramel Nut Chocolate Tartlet too. Book a table at IGNIV to try the real deal for yourself.