These homemade Taiwan pineapple cakes/tarts are truly one of the best I have ever made. The buttery, light, and melt-in-the-mouth shortcrust pastry is filled with homemade pineapple jam.
I suggest you prepare the pineapple jam at least the day before and let it chill in the fridge. Portion out the filling into 18-gram portion and roll into round balls for easier wrapping. Cover and let them chill in the fridge until ready to be used
Prepare pastry dough:
Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk all the dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside
Put the softened butter in a mixing bowl. Cream on medium speed for about 2-3 minutes, just until it's creamy, don't overbeat. Add icing sugar and beat again until just mixed. Add the room temperature egg yolk and condensed milk and mix again until just combined. Add the dry ingredients. Use a spatula to fold to combine. It may appear dry at first. Then use your hand to form a dough. Wrap it with a cling wrap and let it rest for 30 minutes at room temperature (not the fridge) to relax the gluten
Wrapping:
After resting, portion the dough out into about 20-22 grams dough ball. Roll them into round balls and keep them cover to prevent the dough from drying out
Work with one dough at a time. Flatten the dough and roll into about 3-inch circle, roughly. Place one filling in the middle and wrap the dough around it. Gently stretch the dough to cover the filling and roll it into a round ball. Put this round ball into the mold and place on top of a baking sheet. If the mold you have comes with a press, use that to press the dough to fit into the mold corner to corner. Turn it over and do the same on the other side to make sure the surface is flat and level. The pastry will expand a bit after baking, so there should be a tiny bit of room left on top
Put the whole tray inside the fridge to let them chill for 15 minutes. Preheat oven to 340 F (170 C) while waiting
Baking:
Bake on the middle rack for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown (I need 15 minutes). Then remove from the oven and use a tong to flip each mold over and return to the oven to bake again for another 5-8 minutes or until golden brown again. I need 8 minutes
Remove from the oven and let them cool down for 5 minutes and then lift off the mold (it will slide right off). Transfer to a cooling rack to cool down completely. Then transfer to an air-tight container and store for a week at room temperature
Wait for at least 24 hours before serving (recommended):
This pineapple tart doesn't taste as good the same day you make them. I highly suggest waiting for at least 24 hours (I know, it's hard!) before serving them. They seriously tastes better and better as time goes