Jam Tarts with Gluten Free Pâté Sucrée Pastry – Mini Mouthfuls of Joy

Take Jam Tarts to a new level with enriched gluten free Pâté Sucrée pastry. It isn’t hard to make, but will take your jam tarts to French Patisserie perfection.

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Gluten Free Jam Tarts that are better than Mr Kipling!

Who loves Jam Tarts? Well… I’m sticking my neck out here… But I think these Mini Jam Tarts are way better than Mr Kipling’s! Actually, I’ve never been much of a fan of Mr Kipling Jam Tarts. Even as a gluten-eater, I found the jam too sweet and too thin and the pastry a bit ‘stale’.

But this recipe for Jam Tarts takes them way beyond average. Why? Because they have been made with the most luxurious sweet crust pastry… gluten free Pâté Sucrée. And that means they are less bog-standard ‘tart’ and more ‘pâtisserie’… Retro move over! These tarts are so pretty, they would happily grace the table of the poshest of parties and buffets.

What are Jam Tarts?

Jam Tarts are a very British sweet treat that date back to at least the 15^th Century. They became popular with the cheap import of West Indian sugar and with it, the rise of jam making. Defined as a shallow open pastry case filled with jam, they are exactly what they are called. Mr Kipling may have brought them into mass production, but they have been around for literally centuries.

Jam Tarts are also so easy to make and so universally loved, that they remain a favourite for a quick home-baked treat and for baking up with the kids.

What is Pâté Sucrée?

Pâté Sucrée is a sweet, slightly crumbly French sweet pastry dough often used to make fancy dessert tarts. Enriched with egg yolks and a little sugar, it is more yellow in colour than standard shortcrust pastry. It is also ‘creamier’ in flavour, light and buttery and slightly softer.

A recipe for gluten free Pâté Sucrée

Heads up… The recipe shared for gluten free Pâté Sucrée is not my own. It comes courtesy of the lovely Adriana Rabinovich, a professional chef who’s daughter was diagnosed with Coeliac Disease (or Celiac Disease if you live state-side).

Way back in 2015, I was lucky enough to attend one of her gluten free pastry courses. I came away with pastry knowledge and techniques that allowed my gluten free pastry-making to flourish. Including this wonderfully decadent and enriched Pâté Sucrée shortcrust.

Her book The Gluten Free Cookbook For Kids was one of the first and most useful gluten free cookbooks I ever bought… Indeed, it remains the most ‘well-thumbed’ cookbook in my collection. And has been influential as I have moved forward over time to develop my own recipes.

So… credit where credit is due… Thanks Adriana for so generously sharing your recipe.

Do I have to make gluten free Jam Tarts with Pâté Sucrée?

Gluten free Pâté Sucrée is so fun and easy, it is absolutely worth making. But jam tarts are jam tarts whatever pastry they are made with. So, if you prefer standard shortcrust, it’s absolutely fine to go with that.

Here’s the best basic Gluten Free Shortcrust Recipe, with step-by-step instructions. It is super-easy to handle, isn’t gritty and is less likely to crumble like so many you may have tried.

What’s the best jam to make Jam Tarts?

The jam you use for jam tarts is up to you. These are YOUR tarts! But for preference, I would always recommend a jam which is more fruit and less sugar. That way they won’t be too sickly and they are less likely to bake to a dry puddle of sweet glue.

Why not try making your own jam? It’s actually really straight forward and is almost always nicer than the shop-bought jars… I made my jam tarts with homemade Strawberry, Rhubarb and Pomegranate Jam. But my Low-Sugar Strawberry Jam without Pectin would work well too, as would this Mixed Berry and Apple Jam.

Or… You could simply bake the pastry cases straight and then fill with rich and creamy Citrus Curd, Rhubarb Curd or homemade Chocolate-Hazelnut ‘Nutella’ Spread.

Can I use the recipe to make standard-sized gluten free Jam Tarts?

Yes… Absolutely! I made mine as mini-mouthful tarts both for fun and to get the perfect balance of jam against pastry. They are certainly moreish morsels which would be snapped up from buffet tables and ideal for Christmas sharing.

But like I said… These are YOUR tarts… So if you want to make them standard small tart size, or even as one large sharing tart, that’s fine! They’ll still be better than Mr Kipling!

Tips for making gluten free Pâté Sucrée

Gluten free Pâté Sucrée is not hard to make, but is made differently in method to standard shortcrust pastry. So, here’s the low-down on what you need to know to make your Pâté Sucrée perfect…

The Ingredients

• I used Gluten Free Alchemist white flour blend A to make Pâté Sucrée. Other flour blends should work fine. But I absolutely recommend that if you don’t home-blend, you choose a brand which is balanced away from all rice flour to avoid over-grittiness.
• Unsalted butter is best… It has a lower water content than salted butter and will support the pastry texture, structure and richness.
• Be sure your sugar is caster sugar (also known as superfine) for the smoothest results.
• Pâté Sucrée is an enriched dough which uses egg YOLKS. They contain more fat than whites and therefore support the texture, flavour and handling of the pastry dough.

Not sure what to do with left-over egg whites? Why not make Nutella Thumbprint Cookies, Mini Meringues, Amaretti Cookies or some Orange Macaron? Or go ‘cake’ or ‘dessert’ with some Raspberry Friands, an Angel Cake, a Pavlova or a soft and light Meringue Roulade.

PÂTÉ SUCRÉE Method

• Make sure the butter is perfectly softened before you start. With Pâté Sucrée it is NOT ‘rubbed in’.
• Making Pâté Sucrée is done by hand on the work counter. And it’s lots of fun. So, follow the instructions carefully.
• Basically, you create a flour ‘moat’ on the work surface and then you dump the wet ingredients in the middle. These are then mixed together with fingers, first using a ‘pecking’ and ‘pinching’ action, until a beautiful, smooth and silky dough forms.
• Be gentle with the dough. Kneading will result in tough pastry. To help the dough meld and smooth after finger-mixing, it is simply picked up and dropped onto the work surface a few times. Drop from a height of 20 to 30 cm, much as you would lightly drop a ball.
• Chill the dough before use to ensure even hydration and time for the mixture to relax before rolling/shaping.
• For Mini Jam Tarts, use a mini tart tin with a wooden tamper. And ‘rock’ the ball of pastry into the tin using the tamper.

Ready to make Jam Tarts and have a go at Gluten Free Pâté Sucrée?

I really hope you give gluten free Pâté Sucrée a try when making your next batch of Jam Tarts. It’s such a delicious pastry and perfect for making Jam Tarts extra special!

If you make them, let me know with a comment. Or tag me on Social Media with your photos of how they turned out. And let me know what jam you used and whether they were #betterthanmrkipling 🤭

You’ll find me on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter.

For lots more recipe inspiration, you can also head over to our beautiful Gluten Free Recipe Book Index and have a browse at all the photographic temptation!

Other Gluten Free Treats with Jam

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5 from 9 votes

Jam Tarts with Gluten Free Pâté Sucrée Pastry

Take Jam Tarts to a new level with enriched gluten free Pâté Sucrée pastry. It isn’t hard to make, but will take your jam tarts to Patisserie perfection.

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Prep Time45 minutes mins

Cook Time12 minutes mins

Chill the pastry1 hour hr

Total Time1 hour hr 57 minutes mins

Course: Afternoon Tea, Bake Sale, Party, pastry, Sweet Treats

Cuisine: British, French, Gluten Free

Keyword: jam, pastry, patisserie, tart

Servings: 20

Calories per serving: 131.8kcal

Author: Gluten Free Alchemist – Kate Dowse (with Pâté Sucrée recipe by Adriana Rabinovich)

Ingredients 

0.33x0.5x0.66x1x1.5x2x

MetricUS Customary

Pâté Sucrée Pastry

• 170 g gluten free plain flour blend I used GFA blend A – See NOTES
• pinch fine sea salt
• 85 g unsalted butter softened
• 3 large egg yolks room temperature – UK large (Canadian ‘Extra Large’; Australian ‘Jumbo’; and US ‘Extra or Very Large’)
• 85 g caster sugar (superfine sugar)
• ½ tsp vanilla extract

To fill and decorate

• 370 g jam Approx weight – to fill the tarts
• fresh raspberries For decoration (optional)

Instructions

Pâté Sucrée Pastry Dough

• Whisk the flour and salt in a bowl and then tip onto a clean work surface.
• Push the flour outwards into a circle 'moat' and to make a large 'well' in the centre, surrounded by flour.
• Place the softened butter in the middle, and then add the egg yolks, sugar and vanilla.
• Use your finger tips in a ‘pecking’ and 'pinching' motion to first mix the butter, sugar, egg and vanilla into a soft paste (it will look like scrambled eggs, as you go through this process).
• Then, start to pull the flour into the central wet mixture and gently work until it comes together into a dough.
• Do not ‘knead’ it, but pick up the ball of dough and drop gently onto the work surface several times until smooth. Be careful not to overwork… It is done when the surface feels smooth.
• Cut the dough ball in half and wrap in cling film. Chill both pieces for about 30 minutes in the fridge.
• When ready to roll, remove from the fridge and gently press down with the palm of your hand to warm slightly and soften if it is too hard.

To shape the pastry dough into tarts

• For mini tarts, you need a mini tart tin and a pastry pusher/tamper or children’s rolling pin.
• Take small walnut-sized pieces of dough and roll them into balls.
• Dip the end of your rolling pin in cornflour and then place a ball of dough into a tart hole.
• Gently push down on the ball with the tamper and carefully rock it from side to side, until dough pushes itself up the sides of the tin into a neat mini pastry case.
• Repeat this process for all the balls (making sure the end of the rolling pin/pusher is well-floured to prevent sticking).

Chill, fill, bake and decorate

• Place the tin of dough pastry cases in the fridge to chill for half an hour.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180 C/350 F/Gas 4.
• When chilled use a teaspoon to place a small blob of jam in the base of each pastry case. Be careful not to fill to the very top as the jam may bubble over.
• Bake for about 10 to 12 minutes until the pastry edges are golden.
• Allow to cool before removing from the tin.
• When cool, top each mini tart with a fresh raspberry (optional)

Notes

* Note: nutritional information is an estimate & may vary according to portion size/ingredient variants.

Gluten Free Alchemist Flour Blend A can be found on the GFA Flours & Flour Blending Page. If using an alternative flour blend, the texture may be slightly different.

Nutrition

Calories: 131.8kcal | Carbohydrates: 22.5g | Protein: 1.3g | Fat: 4.4g | Saturated Fat: 2.4g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 36.8mg | Sodium: 7.7mg | Potassium: 18.3mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 13.5g | Vitamin A: 143IU | Vitamin C: 1.6mg | Calcium: 13.1mg | Iron: 0.4mg

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© 2019-2023 Kate Dowse All Rights Reserved – Do not copy or re-publish this recipe or any part of this recipe on any other blog, on social media or in a publication without the express permission of Gluten Free Alchemist

Mini Jam Tarts with Gluten Free Pâté Sucrée shared with

• Cook Blog Share Week 18 2021 with Family Friends Food
• Fiesta Friday #381 with Angie and The Not So Creative Cook
• Blogger’s Pit Stop #270
• Full Plate Thursday #536 with Miz Helen’s Country Cottage
• What’s For Dinner #315 with The Lazy Gastronome
• Sundays on Silverado #41 with The House on Silverado

Previously Shared with – The Pastry Challenge with United Cakedom.