Hungarian Tart made with Orange Marmalade

Hungarian Tart 

Hungarian Tart

Hungarian Tart is a good example of a golden oldie … its goes back generations and remains a favourite in households across diverse cultures internationally.  There are many names to this delicious tart, but it is more commonly known as “Jam Tart”.

Many will agree that it is often one of the favourite tarts found amongst the sweetmeats and savouries set in colourful platters, which are exchanged by family and friends during Diwali, Eid and other festivals.   

I would never forget Jam Tarts. I helped my mum bake Jam Tarts as a child and my job was to grate the dough over the jam before it went into the oven.  I was told by mum that it was a very important job, and so every time we baked Jam Tarts, I would wait anxiously to grate the dough with pride!

Jam Tart is a really tasty, easy to bake tart, not to mention that it can be ready in just 45 minutes from the preparation to baking time.  It is fun to prepare especially with little kids anxious to help out in the kitchen. It is the ideal quick bake, when guests are coming over, or when you are just in the mood to bake a treat for the family. The list of ingredients required is really minimal and will be found in just about everyone’s grocery cupboards.

Bitter-sweet but still a treat

We all know that Jam Tart is meant to be sweet.  

Usually Jam Tart is made with apricot jam or mixed fruit jam but I use orange marmalade in my recipe.  All jams or marmalades are made with sugar.

Orange Marmalade

Orange marmalade is a preserve which contains the flesh of oranges and thin slices of orange rind. The fruit content therein, provides some nutritional benefits, as it contains vitamins and also helps reduce the intake of sodium in one’s diet. The taste of orange rind is generally bitter.  The bitter-sweet taste of orange marmalade is hence an acquired taste.

The use of orange marmalade in my recipe is a unique taste.  As you take every bite, the flavour of the orange marmalade, the orange rind and sweetness of the tart all come alive as they combine in your mouth … simply a taste to be savoured with every bite! 

Marmalade

My Recipe for Hungarian Tart (Jam Tart)

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Baking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

130g softened butter

1 large egg

¾ teaspoon of vanilla essence

2 tablespoons castor sugar or icing sugar

2 cups of all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons of baking powder

¼ teaspoon of ground cardamom

Orange marmalade

1 teaspoon of icing sugar to dust

Process

1.    To begin with, preheat the oven to 180 ^o C

2.    Line a 15cm x 24cm baking dish with baking paper or simply grease the baking dish with butter or oil and place aside.

3.   In a deep bowl place the softened butter and add the sugar to this.  Using an electric whisk cream the butter and sugar until smooth and light.

4.   Break an egg into a separate bowl, then add the egg to the creamed butter and sugar mixture. To this add the vanilla essence and whip together.

5.   Get out your sieve and sieve together the all-purpose flour and baking powder and add this to the creamed mixture. Add your ground cardamom.

6.   Again using the electric whisk, mix until all the ingredients are combined well.  At this stage the mixture will be light and resemble bread crumbs.

7.   Next step is to get your hands into the mixture and knead gently, until a soft dough is formed.

8.   Divide the dough, such that a tennis ball size of dough is kept aside.  Place the bigger portion of the dough into your greased baking dish and flatten until the entire base is covered. Then using a fork, poke holes into the dough.  This ensures that the dough is baked through evenly.

9.    Now spread the jam in a thick but even layer over the dough.

10. Using the smaller portion of dough, grate this and spread evenly over the layer of jam.

11.  Place the baking dish in the preheated oven and set the timer for 30 minutes.

12.Once the timer goes off, remove carefully from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes before lightly dusting the tart with icing sugar.

13. Slice into to even squares.

Storage

I usually get 15 squares out of my batch. These Tarts can be stored in an airtight container lined with wax paper or baking paper for up to 5 days. Do not line the container with paper towels as this causes the tarts to soften very quickly.

 Using my recipe, you would be lucky enough if your Tarts last until the end of the second day!