Pineapple Tarts (Melts in Your Mouth)

Close up of a plate of pineapple tarts with a bite out of one of them.

Pineapple Tarts (Melts in Your Mouth)

One bite into these melt in your mouth pineapple tarts and you are instantly greeted with a sweet and savory crumbly pastry that highlights a tropical, tangy pineapple spiced jam filling. These popular Lunar New Year treats are perfect for bringing good luck and prosperity all year round!

Course Dessert

Cuisine Chinese

Prep Time 1

Cook Time 1

Total Time 3

Servings Cookies

Calories 527kcal

Author Takes Two Eggs

Ingredients

Pineapple Filling

2 ¼ cup (600 g) Pineapple, fresh or frozen
½ teaspoon (1 g) cinnamon
¼ teaspoon (1 g) salt
½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
1 tablespoon (30 g) maltose
2 tablespoon (30 g) unsalted butter
¼ teaspoon (1 g) vanilla extract
1 teaspoon (5 g) Lemon juice (optional)

Pineapple Tart

10 tablespoon (130 g) salted butter
3 ½ tablespoon (50 g) cream cheese
¼ cup (40 g) powdered sugar
¼ teaspoon (1 g) salt
2 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon (5 g) vanilla extract
¼ cup (30 g) milk powder
1 tablespoon (10 g) custard powder
¼ cup (37 g) corn starch
2 ¼ cup (155 g) cake flour

Egg Wash

1 egg yolk
½ tsp milk
1 tsp vegetable oil

Instructions

Pineapple Filling

Prepare pineapple. Remove the skin and eyes from the pineapple flesh. Slice the pineapple away from the core. You can also use canned pineapple as well. Using a food processor, chop the pineapple until chopped but not too fine. Leave some pineapple pieces for added texture.
Cook pineapple and spices. In a large saucepan, add the pineapple and cinnamon, and salt. Heat on medium heat and stir occasionally to prevent burning. After 15 minutes of simmering, add the sugar and maltose and mix. Continue cooking until the moisture has evaporated and the mixture becomes sticky about 1-1 1/2 hours. The longer you cook it the firmer the jam will be.
Test the desired firmness: take a tablespoon of the jam and place it on a plate in the refrigerator until room temperature. You want the texture to be moist and slightly firm.
Add butter and vanilla. Once you reach desired consistency, turn the heat down low add the butter and mix until melted. Turn the heat off and add the vanilla. At this point, you can adjust the sweetness based on your preference, if too sweet add a teaspoon of lemon juice. If too tart, add more sugar.
Shape and freeze. Cool. Using disposable gloves, roll out 25 equal balls of mixture and place on a parchment-lined baking tray, and freeze in the freezer until firm.

The Pastry

Cream the butter. In a large mixing bowl, using an electric mixer or hand whisk, beat the butter, cream cheese, sugar, salt until pale yellow, creamy and smooth, about 3 minutes on medium speed.
Add egg yolks and vanilla. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and whisk until pale and creamy, about 1-2 min on medium speed.
Add cornstarch, milk powder, custard powder. Whisk until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 1-2 min on medium speed.
Using a silicone spatula, sift and fold in cake powder. Fold until incorporated. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or for best results overnight.

Option A for pineapple mold

Make the green dough. Take out 40 g of dough and dye it with green food coloring or pandan extract. Take the remaining dough and dye it with yellow food coloring (optional).
Preheat oven to 325°F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
Roll out the green dough into 24 equal amounts (approximately 2 g each). Roll out the yellow dough into 24 equal amounts (approximately 18 g each). Freeze for at least 20 minutes.
Take the yellow dough and form a flat disc. Add the pineapple filling and form a log the size of the mold.
Lightly grease your mold with spray oil. Press the green dough ball into the mold first where the leaves are. Next place the yellow pineapple-filled dough into the mold.
Press the mold onto the parchment-lined baking sheet to eject the pineapple tart. The tarts should be placed 1 inch apart. Continue until finished

Option B No Mold:

Roll out the dough into a flat disc. Add the pineapple and roll into a ball. Place on baking tray 1 inch apart.
To prevent the tarts from spreading, freeze the assembled tarts for 15-20 minutes before baking.
Bake at 325°F for 12 minutes turning the tray halfway through. After 12 minutes, take the tray out and very lightly brush the egg wash and continue baking for 5 minutes or until slightly golden brown.

Notes

Use a food processor to blend the pineapple. This allows you to easily control how blended the pineapple bits get. Using a blender may lead to over-blending.

Test the desired firmness of the pineapple jam before adding butter: take a tablespoon of the jam and place it on a plate in the refrigerator until room temperature. It should firm up as it chills. You want the texture to be moist and slightly firm. Undercooking the jam will also make the jam difficult to shape and work with.
Use a wide pot for the pineapple jam. The larger surface area will allow the pineapple juices to evaporate and cook down faster.
Work in a cool environment and freeze the dough. This tart has a crumbly crust which means that it needs to be worked rather quickly or it will melt in your hands. Make sure to turn the air on in your home, and freeze the dough and pineapple jam for optimal shaping.
To prevent cracking in the crust, lightly glaze the pineapple part of the crust (not the leaves) after it is baked for at least 12 minutes and place it back in the oven to continue baking for 5-6 minutes.
Only glaze the yellow pineapple base, not the leaves. The glaze will turn slightly yellow/brown and will lose all the texture on the leaves. Also, only use the smallest amount of glaze to prevent it from being overly glossy, and losing the texture of the mold.
Storage Instructions. These pineapple tarts are best eaten at least 24 hours after baking. This allows the pastry to age and the flavors to blend together. They can be eaten immediately but they may be a bit crumbly the first day. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks. They may last even longer depending on your room temperature.

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