I've been working on this Kumquat Rosemary Tart for over a year. It's made with kumquat curd and a rosemary cookie crust. I started it last year, but by the time I had it dialed in, kumquat season was over and I didn't want to post a recipe where people couldn't easily get the main ingredient. I hope you make this tart soon. The kumquat and rosemary are an amazing combination. The citrus taste of the kumquats combined with the floral of the rosemary hits all the right notes.
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How to Make the Rosemary Tart Crust
The rosemary tart crust is very simple and has just five ingredients:
- All-Purpose Flour
- Granulated Sugar
- Unsalted Butter
- Fresh Rosemary
- Kosher Salt
The flour, sugar, and butter are placed in a bowl and whisk to thoroughly combine. Finely chop the fresh rosemary and add it and the butter to a small saucepan to melt the butter over medium heat and allow steep off the heat for 10 minutes once all the butter is melted. Rewarm the butter until it is hot. This crust is easier to make and press into the tart pan when hot butter is added to the dry ingredients.
Bake the crust for 30-35 minutes until it is lightly browned. Cool the crust completely before adding the filling.
Which Kumquats to Use for Kumquat Curd
For this curd I used a combination of Meiwa and Centennial Kumquats. Kumquats are usually very tart, but both the skin and the pulp of the Meiwa kumquats are both sweet. They taste almost like candy. On the other hand, the pulp of the Centennial kumquats is sour and the skin really sweet. A very pleasant contrast. The Centennial kumquats are the juiciest kumquats I have ever tasted.
How to Make Kumquat Curd
Kumquat Curd is easy to make, but a little labor intensive depending on how smooth you want the final curd. The kumquats - seed, skin, and pulp, are pureed in a food processor. Side note: I love my food processor and how easy it makes certain jobs in the kitchen. I have a Cuisinart 14-cup Food Processor and highly recommend it if you're looking to buy a new food processor.
After the kumquats are pureed add the sugar and lemon juice and process to combine the ingredients. At this point, you taste the puree for sweetness and add more sugar until the desired sweetness is reached. If you don't have a food processor, you can use a blender.
Kumquats have a lot of natural pectin, so the final curd is very thick. I used a medium-course strainer for straining the curd, which allows some of the kumquat solids in the final curd. If you want a smooth curd, use a fine-mesh strainer. It will take longer to strain the curd if using a fine mesh strainer. Here is the link for the original Kumquat Curd recipe if you are just interested in making the curd.
Assembling the Kumquat Rosemary Tart
After the kumquat curd has chilled it is combined with whipped cream and the filling is poured into the tart shell. The tart is chilled for at least an hour. The tart can be served with sliced kumquats or even more whipped cream on top.
I hope you try this recipe. If you do, please leave a comment or a picture on Instagram and tag me @bakesbybrownsugar.
Recommended Equipment
Kumquat Rosemary Tart
Ingredients
Tart Crust
- 10 tablespoons (142 grams) unsalted butter
- 2 teaspoons finely chopped rosemary
- 1 1/3 cups (189 grams) all-purpose flour
- 5 tablespoons (63 grams) granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Kumquat Curd
- 12 ounces (340 grams) whole Kumquats
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated sugar
- 2 (100 grams) whole eggs
- 3 (60 grams) egg yolks
- 8 tablespoons (113 grams) unsalted butter cut into 8 pieces
Cream Filling
- 1 cup (232 grams) heavy whipping cream
- 1 teaspoon powdered gelatin
- 1 tablespoon water
Instructions
For the Crust
- Adjust 1 oven rack to the middle position in the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Add the butter and the chopped rosemary to a small saucepan and melt the butter until the butter is melted. Remove the saucepan from the heat and allow the butter and rosemary to steep 10 minutes. Reheat the butter over medium heat until it is hot.
- Whisk flour, sugar, and salt together in a bowl. Add melted butter and stir and with a silicone spatula or wooden spoon until a dough forms. Using your hands, press two-thirds of dough into the bottom of 9- inch tart pan with removable bottom. Press remaining dough into fluted sides of the pan. Press and smooth dough with your hands to even thickness.
- Place pan on a wire rack set in a rimmed baking sheet and bake on the middle rack, until crust is deep golden brown and firm to touch, 30 to 35 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking. Set it aside and let it cool before filling with the kumquat filling.
Kumquat Curd Filling
- Cut the butter into 8 pieces. Next to the stove place a medium course strainer over a bowl. This bowl is for the finished curd.
- Place kumquats and the lemon juice in the bowl of a food processor. Process until the kumquats are puréed, about 1 minute. You may need to stop the processor after 30 seconds and scrape down the sides. Add the sugar and process for about 10 seconds. At this point taste the puree and if it is still too tart add additional sugar, two tablespoons at a time until it reaches desired sweetness.
- Place the pureed kumquats in a 3-quart saucepan. Add the eggs and whisk to combine. Place pan over medium heat and whisk continuously until the mixture reaches 180 degrees, about 6-8 minutes. Remove the curd from the heat and whisk in all 8 tablespoons of butter. Pour the curd into the strainer and use a large spatula to press the curd through the strainer and into the bowl below.
- Cover the curd with plastic wrap by placing a piece of plastic wrap over the bowl, lightly press it onto the surface of the curd. Place the bowl in the refrigerator and allow to finish cooling.
For the Cream Filling
- Chill the bowl and the beaters for the heavy cream. Remove the kumquat curd from the refrigerator and whisk the curd to loosen it up.
- Place the gelatin and water in a heatproof measuring cup and allow it to sit for 5 minutes. Set the cup in a pan of hot water for a few minutes and stir occasionally until the gelatin is dissolved. Set it aside.
- In the chilled bowl beat the cream until it begins to thicken. Gradually beat in the warm gelatin until and beat until stiff peaks began in to form. With a wire whisk fold the whipped cream into the kumquat curd until it is uniform in color. Pour the filling into the baked tart shell and chill for at least one hour.
Shawn says
Made this tonight and it was so so good. Easily one of my favorites.
Cheryl Norris says
Hi Shawn
Thank you so much for visiting the Bakes by Brown Sugar blog and for trying this recipe. I'm so glad that you love the taste of the kumquat tart and that it's now a favorite.
Anne says
This is amazing!!! Seriously blown away. I will make this again and again. I am not an experienced baker and it still turned out just wonderful. I am so happy i found this recipe and blog. Can't wait to try more stuff 🙂
Cheryl Norris says
Hi Anne
Thank you for visiting my blog and trying this recipe. I'm so glad that you enjoyed it. I love kumquat curd. It turned out so much better than I expected when I first made this recipe. And thank you for leaving a comment.
Sheila says
.lovely recipe Very successful Pastry great and the filling to die for Thankyou for sharing
Ritz says
Thank you for the recipe. I made this for a birthday and I came out delicious. I did substitute the sugar for monk fruit sugar, added a 1/3 c of clover honey and substituted the flour for almond/coconut flour. Everyone love it and didn’t even notice it was low sugar and gluten-free.
Cheryl Norris says
Hello
Thank you for visiting the blog and making this recipe. I'm so glad you enjoyed it. Thank you for the information on the gluten-free version. I will make a note of that and give it a try.
beth k says
Super delicious, many thanks! A question for you - which crust recipe would make a better base for a citrus square adaptation - this flour rosemary crust or the almond flour pate sucre crust from your meyer lemon recipe? I've a need for squares for finger food...