Easy Custard Tart with a Chocolate Pastry Shell

A baked custard tart features a delicious pastry shell and a creamy vanilla filling.  This dessert may be fairly simple in terms of flavor and appearance, but it is perfectly delicious! For this tart, I chose to go with a chocolate pastry shell and a vanilla custard.  You can easily jazz these up, but sometimes sticking to a simple flavor palette can be oh so satisfying.

 

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This recipe was originally published on August 8, 2019.  It was republished on November 10, 2022 with updates.

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Baked Vanilla Custard

 

I’ve made custard on the stove top several times, like when I made cream puffs or the cherry almond tart, but until this recipe, I had never baked custard before.  Baked custard and stove top custard are drastically different. 

Custard on a stove top is basically an indulgent pudding.  It’s thick, creamy, and perfect for spooning into your face.  You’ll typically find flour or cornstarch in these recipes to help thicken the custard.  A baked custard is smooth and creamy, but it has a set, slightly firm texture.  The custard base looks a lot thinner before cooking, partially because you will not find flour in this recipe.

 

 

Custard Tart

 

Now that we understand the differences between a baked custard and a stove top custard (totally my term for that, by the way), let’s talk about this custard tart.  When I applied for The Great American Baking Show, one of the recipes the culinary producer asked me about was a baked custard. So when I created my new recipe lineup, I had to include this baking technique!

For this recipe, I was tempted to be extra.  Matcha, earl grey, cajeta, ginger, cherries. These flavors kept bouncing around my brain.  In the end, I decided to keep it simple since I had never baked a custard before. But I’ve made sweet pastry crust before and I wanted something different.  So I decided to go with CHOCOLATE! 

 

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Chocolate Pastry Shell

 

The cocoa powder adds a nice bit of flavor. It’s almost like eating a chocolate cookie with a vanilla custard on top.  And since the chocolate pastry dough is so yummy, I like a slightly thicker tart shell than normal. Feel free to roll yours out thinner if that’s your preference.

 

The first time I made this recipe, I had a total space case blunder moment. I forgot to add the pie weights!! Yeah, I freaked the flip out.  I tried to put the pie weights on top, but the crust was already melted and it made a hole in the soggy crust.  Ahh!!

If you ever find yourself in the same situation, here’s what I wish I’d done. I should have just let it baked without the weights. It would have puffed up, but I could have pressed it back down when it was done baking. Not ideal, but better than punching a whole in the shell.

 

 

Pastry Dough Tips & Tricks

 

Making pastry dough and making pie dough are very similar processes. I have a video tutorial that shows three different methods for making pie crust. Check it out and you can adapt them for this chocolate pastry dough. Cold is the name of the game here. We don’t want the butter to melt and we don’t want to over work the dough. 

 

Related Reading: Mini Whiskey Caramel Tarts

 

Prevent a Soggy Crust

 

Since the custard bakes low and slow, there’s plenty of time for the liquid to begin to soak into the crust.  One step you could take to prevent this is brushing a thin layer of egg onto the shell after you remove the pie weights.  When you bake it for the additional 5 minutes, it will create a shield to prevent a soggy crust.

This step is purely optional and one I did not take.  The chocolate pastry shell is pretty thick, so even when the custard soaks in a bit, the slices will not be soggy.  However, if you roll your dough out thinner, you may want to consider this preventative measure.

 

 

Vanilla Custard Filling

 

It’s important to finish baking the chocolate tart shell before you make the vanilla custard. The custard will come together quickly, and you want that tart shell ready and waiting for you when you’re done.

To prevent spills, place your tart pan on a silicone mat on a baking sheet in the oven. Now carefully pour your custard through a sieve into the pastry shell. You will likely have a small amount of custard leftover. Do not overfill your tart or it will be a mess!

 

 

On Food and Cooking 

 

After I made this baked custard tart for the first time, I was reading On Food and Cooking.  I happened to be in the egg chapter which includes several pages just about custards.  Turns out “custard” refers to a dish “…prepared and served in the same container, often baked and therefore unstirred, so that it sets into a solid gel.”

In contrast, a pudding like custard is actually a cream.  Creams, like the one I used in my cherry almond tart, are stirred continuously on the stove top.  These recipes also tend to include flour or cornstarch as a thickening agent that can also help prevent curdling.  

 

By the way, if you love learning about the tiny little details, food facts, and the science behind cooking, check this book out.  It’s a thick beast, but I’m enjoying reading a chapter here and there. This book helps explain the science behind our recipes in painstaking detail.  My nerdy self loves it!

 

Related Reading: 5 of the Best Baking Books

 

Simple, But Delicious

 

This baked custard tart is not a showstopper. In fact, I find it a bit plain looking and I don’t like how it looks. My first instinct was to find a way to cover it up, maybe with a brulee topping. But my husband reminded me this is Bakes & BLUNDERS. I’ve got to show you the ugly recipes too.

Here’s the thing. Before I even took a bite, I knew this tart was delicious. It’s almost like a chocoflan tart. There’s the thick, but tender, chocolate pastry with a layer of smooth, creamy vanilla custard. That’s a killer combo in my book.

 

Enjoy!

 

Savor that bite of lightly sweet chocolate pastry and creamy vanilla custard.  It’s a delicious, light dessert that is easy to make. Add your own touch, like a creme brulee finish, fresh berries, or powdered sugar to take this treat to the next level.

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