Lemon coconut tarts

25 Mar

Serves 8

400g sweet shortcrust pastry
125g butter, softened
1½ cups caster sugar
4 large eggs
½ cup thick, plain yoghurt
Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 cup desiccated coconut
Fresh fruit, such as peach slices, to decorate Icing sugar, to dust

1. Heat oven to 200°C (180°C fan bake). Roll out pastry to 3mm thick and use to line eight 10cm tart tins. Prick bases with a fork and chill for 30 minutes. Line pastry cases with foil and fill with baking beans to bake blind (see tip).

2. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove foil and beans and return pastry cases to the oven for 5 minutes more to dry pastry. Reduce oven temperature to 180°C (160°C fan bake).

3. Place butter and sugar in a bowl, then beat until pale and creamy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Stir in yoghurt, lemon zest and juice, and coconut.

4. Spoon mixture into prepared tart shells and bake for 20 minutes or until mixture is golden brown and lightly puffed. Decorate with fresh fruit and dust with icing sugar to serve.

Tip: To blind bake (for pies and tarts that have their fillings put in a pre-baked pastry case), fill pastry cases with rice or any dried beans, such as chickpeas or kidney beans, before baking. The rice or beans can be used over and over again but should be reserved specifically for this purpose.



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