NEENISH TARTS

PREP + COOK TIME 1 HOUR 45 MINUTES (+ REFRIGERATION & COOLING) MAKES 24

1¾ cups (260g) plain flour

¼ cup (40g) icing sugar

185g cold unsalted butter,

chopped coarsely

1 egg yolk

2 teaspoons iced water, approximately 1/3 cup (110g) strawberry jam

MOCK CREAM

¾ cup (165g) caster sugar

1/3 cup (80ml) water 1½ tablespoons milk ½ teaspoon gelatine

185g unsalted butter, softened 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

GLACÉ ICING

1½ cups (240g) icing sugar

15g unsalted butter, melted 2 tablespoons hot milk, approximately pink food colouring

1 teaspoon cocoa powder

1 Process flour, sugar and butter until crumbly. With motor operating, add egg yolk and enough of the water to make ingredients come together. Turn dough out onto a floured surface; knead gently until smooth. Wrap pastry in plastic wrap; refrigerate for 30 minutes.

2 Grease 2 x 12-hole (2-tablespoon/ 40ml) deep flat-based patty pans.

Roll out half the pastry between sheets of baking paper until 3mm thick. Cut out 12 x 7.5cm rounds; press rounds into holes of one pan. Prick bases of cases well with a fork. Repeat with remaining pastry. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

3 Preheat oven to 220°C/200°C fan. 4 Bake cases for 12 minutes. Stand cases in pans for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool.

5 Meanwhile, make mock cream, then glacé icing. 6 Spoon jam into cases; fill cases with mock cream, level tops with a spatula. Spread pink icing over half of each tart; spread chocolate icing over other half.

MOCK CREAM

Stir sugar, ¼ cup of the water and the milk in a small saucepan over low heat, without boiling, for 2 minutes or until sugar dissolves. Sprinkle gelatine over remaining water in a small jug; stir into milk mixture for 2 minutes or until gelatine dissolves. Cool to room temperature. Beat butter and extract in a small bowl with an electric mixer until as white as possible. With motor operating, gradually beat in the cooled milk mixture; beat until light and fluffy.

GLACÉ ICING

Sift icing sugar into a medium bowl; stir in butter and enough of the milk to make a thick paste. Divide icing between two small heatproof bowls; tint icing in one bowl with pink colouring and the other with sifted cocoa. Stir each bowl of icing over a small saucepan of simmering water until the icing is spreadable.