Mad about Pineapple Tarts
I must confess, I’m not exactly crazy about pineapple tarts. Yes, completely inconceivable, I know, given that these tarts are a staple in every household here in Singapore come Chinese New Year. But I have two perfectly valid reasons; my family makes them EVERY year and the process is extremely laborious, especially if one makes the pineapple jam from scratch.
In the past few years, my dad has taken over the time-consuming process that is pineapple jam making. I think it could be because:
a) He actually enjoys the process because I cannot imagine why anyone would otherwise take on a task which consists of grating 8 - 10 ripe honey pineapples by hand and then standing in front of a hot stove, constantly stirring a pot of juicy grated pineapples for 3 - 4 hours until almost all the juice has cooked away and the jam has caramelized to a lovely golden colour.
b) He wants to make sure that his favourite pineapple tarts are on the Chinese New Year baking schedule. There’s no denying the persuasive power of the following argument: “But I’ve already spent hours slaving over the stove making the jam.”
My mum prefers open-faced tarts to rolled balls of pastry with pineapple filling, so the next steps are making, kneading, rolling and cutting the tart dough. The small tarts are then brushed with egg yolk, filled with pineapple jam and finally topped with strips of pastry, which are then also brushed with egg yolk. It may sound easy, but I’m usually pretty tired by the time we get to the 4th tray of tarts.
Every year, after the last tray of tarts comes out of the oven, I tell myself that I won’t make pineapple tarts next year. But deep down, I know that we’d still end up doing it because my brother, who’s a really picky-eater and who’d travel miles for good food, tells us that he’s yet to taste any pineapple tarts that are as good as these. 
Here’s wishing everyone a very Happy Chinese New Year!
February 8th, 2008 at 5:42 am
Wow, these are so pretty! They look and sound so delicious. Great work!
February 8th, 2008 at 6:01 am
They look so lovely!
In Taiwan, they have pineapple cakes - actually, more like cookies - square shaped, filled with pineapple jam.
Would you (or your dad) ever make the jam with canned, crushed pineapples?
February 8th, 2008 at 9:27 am
Madeline: Thank you!
Helen: Yes, I’ve tasted the Taiwanese pineapple cakes - they have a lovely crumbly, buttery pastry. I think it’s a great idea to use canned, crushed pineapples, although I’m not sure if the texture would be the same as grated pineapples. It’s also definitely more cost effective to use fresh ones here since pineapples are so readily available.
February 8th, 2008 at 10:13 am
Those are absolutely gorgeous! I’ve never tried anything like this. The pineapple turns into such a beautiful orange color. Really wonderful work.
February 8th, 2008 at 10:28 am
Karen,
How did I miss your blog before? Your stories are wonderful, and your photos are just stunning. I’m a software developer too, and nothing relaxes me more than to cook and bake after a day of wireframing and coding. Cheers!
February 8th, 2008 at 10:18 pm
Those tarts are awesome! I wish I had someone making me pineapple jam!
February 9th, 2008 at 12:16 am
Happy New Year! They are gorgeous! Every year I tell myself I will make some and every year I do not!!! So many things to bake…so little time!
February 11th, 2008 at 1:17 am
Those tarts are absolutely beautiful!
February 12th, 2008 at 10:52 am
Hi Karen, Happy CNY! What wonderful bakes you’ve done, esp the lapis cake. That’s one challenge I won’t be confident enough to try in the near future
February 14th, 2008 at 4:47 pm
Thank you, everyone for your kind comments!
Helen: Yes, I know exactly what you mean about not having enough time to try baking everything you’d like to.
Adeline: Do give the lapis cake a shot. I intend to post the recipe soon.
February 14th, 2008 at 11:50 pm
These are just the most beautiful little tarts. They would be a showstopper at any party.
February 16th, 2008 at 8:46 am
Those are absolutely darling! And thanks for a dessert featuring pineapple– it doesn’t get featured often enough, does it?
February 18th, 2008 at 10:04 am
Hi there
How to you keep your tarts fresh for several days. I would cooled mine totally store in air tight container, next day they became soft and did not taste as fresh. Do you have this problem? Hope you can help. Thanks.
May 3rd, 2008 at 11:20 pm
Hi Karen, I chanced upon your blog by chance…looking for muffins recipes. I love the photography and how you package those gingerbread. Do you sell the pineapple tarts? My friend and I are always looking for home made pineapple tarts. Fingers XXX.
Look forward to hearing from you soon.
Cheers,
EO