Tamarillo Curd Mini Tarts

👩🏻‍🍳 Tamara Talks – What is Tamarillo/Tree Tomato?

I first had tree tomatoes (aka tamarillo, sachatomate) at the Wayra Restaurant in Urubamba, Cuzco, Peru in this grilled scallops with sachatomate (local tomato tree) butter. The seared scallops were presented on the half shell on a puddle of savory tamarillo butter. Wow! It made quite an impression!

It is equally suitable for sweet and savory applications. While I worked on this tart recipe, I found fresh tamarillo. I’m working on several tamarillo recipes – a salsa, a salmon with tamarillo sauce, and a “how to prepare fresh tamarillo” video. This recipe uses frozen tamarillo pulp which is pretty widely available in markets that feature Latino foods.

I’ve chosen to do a tamarillo curd recipe that is similar to the passionfruit curd in this Peruvian dessert. Both are made with Goya frozen tropical fruit pulp. If you are not familiar with curds, they’re worth getting to know!

What is a “curd?”

A fruit curd is a type of sweet spread or filling made from fruit juice or pulp, zest, sugar, eggs, and butter. It is typically thick and creamy in texture, similar to a pudding or custard. The mixture is cooked over low heat; the eggs and butter give the curd its smooth and velvety texture.

Fruit curd can be made with a wide variety of fruits, including lemon, lime, orange, passionfruit, raspberry, mango, and even tamarillo/tree tomatoes. Lemon curd is probably the most well-known and popular type of fruit curd, and is often used as a filling for tarts, cakes, and pastries.

Fruit curd should be stored in the refrigerator and can last for several weeks. It is a delicious and versatile ingredient that can be used in a variety of ways, from topping toast, scones, and English muffins to filling pies or layer cakes.

📋 Tamarillo Tart Ingredients

Here is a quick look at the ingredients in the recipe – it’s handy to use at the grocery store or as a summary of what you need. Skip to the recipe for quantities.

Pastry Ingredients

• coconut flour – If gluten is not a concern, feel free to substitute “regular” flour for both flours. I have not tried it!
• fine almond flour – I love the combination of the coconut and almond flour. I don’t entirely avoid wheat flour, but I do when I can. You’re probably fine to use wheat flour for both the coconut and the almond flour if you prefer.
• sugar – On photo day, I used coconut sugar. I am always looking for ingredients that are less-refined. I really like this sugar, but you certainly don’t have to use it. Coconut sugar is used in a 1:1 ratio with white sugar. You might like brown sugar or turbinado sugar as well.
• eggs
• butter – For this recipe, I recommend unsalted butter.
• salt – I like a fine sea salt for this recipe.

Tamarillo Curd Ingredients

• tamarillo pulp – I have no problem finding frozen tamarillo pulp in McAllen. You can substitute any fresh fruit pulp. If you are fortunate enough to have fresh tamarillo pulp, by all means use it!
• sugar – On photo day, I used coconut sugar. I am always looking for ingredients that are less-refined. I really like this sugar, but you certainly don’t have to use it. Coconut sugar is used in a 1:1 ratio with white sugar. You might like brown sugar or turbinado sugar as well.
• eggs
• butter – I use unsalted butter. If you have salted butter, check the seasoning before adding salt.
• lime zest – Orange zest or lemon zest will be fine as well.
• salt – I like fine sea salt!

To Assemble Tamarillo Curd Mini Tarts

🔪 Instructions

An hour is a sufficient amount of time to complete the tamarillo tarts. Make the pastry and bake it. While the pastry bakes, start the tamarillo curd, followed by the whipped cream. NOTE: If you want to make ahead, keep the components separate until closer to serving time!

• Make the pastry dough – Start by preheating your oven to 350°. Add the dry ingredients to a medium prep bowl, and whisk thoroughly to combine. Add the beaten eggs and melted (and cooled) butter. You can use a spatula or your hands to combine it all. The dough is stiff, and I usually use my hands!

• Form the pastry – The reason I like this pastry recipe is because I can press the dough into the forms, avoiding rolling.

• Bake the pastry – Bake until golden brown (about 15-18 minutes). NOTE: I use “convection bake.” It reduces cooking time about 20%, and 15 minutes gets them done. Set aside until you’re ready to assemble the tarts and serve.

• Start the tamarillo curd – NOTE: If you use coconut sugar like I did, your curd will be brown like mine is. If you use white sugar, it will be more the color of the tamarillo pulp. Whisk or use a hand mixer to combine the sugar and tamarillo pulp. If you add the eggs to just the tamarillo, you risk the acidity affecting the texture.

• Finish mixing the tamarillo curd ingredients – Add the cooled melted butter, the zest, and the beaten eggs. Mix thoroughly!

• Cook the tamarillo curd ingredients – If you’re an experienced cook that pays attention, you can cook it with direct heat (medium) on the stove. Otherwise, you’re better off to use a double boiler. Cook, stirring constantly, until it thickens and coats the back of a spoon. NOTE: Curd thickens as it cools.

• Fill the tart pastry – Spoon about 2 tablespoons of the slightly cooled curd into each baked tart shell.

• Finish assembling the tamarillo tarts – After filling each pastry with the tree tomato curd, top them with whipped cream and chiffonade of fresh mint and thin-sliced lime as desired. Enjoy!

❓ FAQ

💭 Tips

While you can certainly purée fresh tamarillo, you may not be able to find them. Save the time and trouble, and use the frozen tamarillo pulp. It is widely available in markets with a decent selection of Latin foods.

STORAGE – If you have leftover tamarillo curd, store it in the refrigerator for about a week. Spread it on toast or English muffins!

The curd will thicken up quite a bit as it cools. I let it come to warm or room temperature before spooning into the pastry.

Have I convinced you to look for tamarillo curd in your market’s freezer section? If you love to try new desserts, you’ll want to give this one a try!