Vanilla is NOT boring! Homemade tart dough is even easier than pie dough with a food processor.
Ingredients:
Tart Dough:
1 1/3 cup all purpose flour (170g)
1/4 cup powdered sugar (30g)
1/2 tsp salt
1 stick butter (113g) cubed
1 large egg yolk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
4 tsp cold water
Vanilla Custard:
1/3 cup sugar (67g)
2 Tbsp cornstarch
4 large egg yolks
1 1/3 cup milk
1/2 a vanilla bean (optional)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract (1 tsp if not using vanilla bean)
Vanilla Whipped Cream:
1 cup whipping/heavy whipping cream
1 Tbsp sugar
1/2 a vanilla bean (optional)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract (1 tsp if not using vanilla bean)
Directions:
Tart Dough:
Add flour, powdered sugar, and salt to a food processor. Add butter. Process until mixture begins to resemble wet sand. Combine egg yolk, vanilla, and water then add to food processor. Pulse until a ball of dough forms. Remove and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until chilled. Press the dough into a 9 inch tart pan (taking care to ensure the seams of the sides and bottom are pressed together), trim the overhang (keep the scraps!), dock with a fork, firmly line with aluminum foil (no weights needed), and bake 15-20 minutes until just starting to turn golden. Remove the foil, then bake another 20-30 minutes until fully baked (10-15 minutes for par-baked if you're using this dough for another recipe). While still hot/warm from the oven, patch any cracks in the tart shell with leftover dough trimmings, brush with egg white, and place tart shell back in warm oven to set the egg wash and cook through the dough patches. Let cool completely.
Vanilla Custard:
Beat together sugar, cornstarch, and egg yolks until mixture is thick and pale yellow. Heat milk and vanilla bean and bring to a simmer. Temper into egg mixture. Return egg/milk mixture to heat and stir constantly until mixture thickens. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract. Cover custard's surface with plastic wrap so a skin doesn't form. Chill.
Vanilla Whipped Cream:
Whip together cream, sugar, and vanilla. Something like soft peaks is good for this - don't over-whip!
Vanilla Custard Tart:
Pour the chilled custard into the fully baked and cooled tart shell. Top with Vanilla Whipped Cream (you can use a piping bag like I did here or even just spread it over - it doesn't need to be perfect, just make sure you don't mix the whipped cream into the bottom custard layer if you spread it). Chill, slice, and serve.