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Tarte au sucre
Maple sugar pie
Québec sugar pie with a creamy brown sugar and maple filling in a flaky crust
Tarte au sucre is the sweet that closes Québec's holiday réveillon (Christmas Eve feast) and the Sunday meal at grandmother's house. Brown sugar, cream and a little maple syrup are thickened with flour and baked in a buttery shell until set like soft fudge, glossy on top. It's very sweet, so slices are thin, often with a dollop of unsweetened whipped cream. Rural Acadian and Franco-Ontarian families make very similar pies. Chef's tip: let it cool completely, for at least 3 hours; warm sugar pie is runny and only sets as it cools.
- Total time
- 75 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 10
Ingredients
For the pastry
- 7 oz plain flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- 4 oz cold buttercubed
- 3 ½ tbsp ice-cold waterroughly
For the filling
- 9 oz dark brown sugar
- 3 tbsp plain flour
- 1 ¼ cups double cream
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 pinch salt
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Rub 4 oz cold butter into 7 oz plain flour and ¼ tsp salt, add 3 ½ tbsp ice-cold water and press into a dough. Wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
30 minStep 2: Heat the oven to 375°F (350°F fan). Roll the pastry out and line a 23 cm pie dish. Chill for 10 minutes.
Step 3: Whisk 9 oz dark brown sugar and 3 tbsp plain flour to break up lumps, then whisk in 1 ¼ cups double cream, ¼ cup maple syrup, 1 egg, 1 tsp vanilla extract and 1 pinch salt until smooth.
Step 4: Pour into the pastry case. Bake on a low shelf for 40–45 minutes, until the crust is golden and the filling is bubbling at the edges with a gentle wobble in the centre. Cover the edges with foil if they brown too fast. Common mistake: baking until firm; it overcooks into a grainy, sugary filling.
45 minStep 5: Cool on a rack for at least 3 hours before slicing. Serve with lightly whipped cream.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 400 kcal
- Protein
- 4 g
- Carbs
- 48 g
- Fat
- 22 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does tarte au sucre take?
- About 75 minutes in total: 30 minutes to prepare and 45 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 10 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of cold butter?
- The same weight of ghee or coconut oil (for frying and most baking).
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