Best New Pastry Chef
Why Weight
Total Eclipse of the Tart
Homemade Sprinkles
About BraveTart123 Dough (ten 4" tarts or one 8" tart)
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Or, as my brother says, “ready, set, dough.” The one-two-three in the name refers to the ratio of sugar, butter and flour used in the recipe, but it’s also as easy as 1-2-3 to put together. I use it for my go-to tart shell, but it can be rolled out and cut as a sugar cookie too.
The dough is stiff enough to roll out as soon as you make it but it stores well too, meaning you don’t have to make and bake it on the same day, if splitting up the work load helps fit a fresh fruit tart in your schedule.
123 Tart Dough, about 10 4” tarts
2 ounces sugar
4 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature
6 ounces flour, sifted
pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla or extract of your choice
optional: 1 teaspoon citrus zest, scrapings from 1/2 a vanilla bean, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, etc.
powdered sugar for rolling
Preheat oven to 350° and lightly grease the tart pan(s). If you’re making one large tart, using a pan with a removable bottom would be ideal.
With a hand or stand mixer, cream together sugar, butter and salt (plus flavoring, if using) for just a few seconds to combine. Add in flour at the lowest speed and mix another minute or two more. The mixture will appear quite mealy and not look particularly dough-like; worry not.
Knead lightly by hand against the sides of the bowl until a smooth dough forms. You can roll out the dough right away, or flatten into a disc, wrap with plastic, and refrigerate until needed (freeze if you’d like to store it for the long term).
When ready to roll, dust the counter and surface of the dough lightly with powdered sugar. Roll the dough to 1/4” thickness and score into 10 portions if making individual tarts. If making one large tart, roll the dough up and onto the pin, then unroll over the tart shell.
In either case, gently press the dough into the tart pan(s), breaking off any excess by pressing the dough firmly against the edge of the tart pan. Use any extra dough to patch up holes or thin spots. The dough is extremely forgiving and you can piece together scraps of dough to form a tart without having to re-roll.
Use a fork to dock the dough all over and bake until very lightly browned, about 14 minutes. Cool the tarts for at least 10 minutes before trying to remove from the shell. Mini tarts will come out easily by simply flipping them over and tapping the edge against the counter.
Fill with lemon curd as I did for my Total Eclipse of the Tart or pastry cream, or whatever sort of filling you fancy.
Any questions?
Apr 08, 2012 · 10:39 PM
@Anita, omg, thanks for pointing that out! I’d recently updated this and it looks like I somehow deleted the sugar from the ingredient list. I’ve put it back now; quite right, 2 ounces! Wow, I should have had that second cup of coffee…
Sep 30, 2012 · 10:45 PM
Hi Stella,
First of all, thank you so much for sharing your recipes! I have recently discovered how much I love making desserts and BraveTart is a great resource for me. 
I was just wondering if the flour in this could be substituted for something GF, or just a little healthier (whole grain?). I kinda have this thing about flour. I know, potentially problematic if I’m gonna continue along the pastry path. Either way, would love to hear your opinion on this. Keep up the stellar blogging!
Thanks!
Sep 30, 2012 · 11:26 PM
Hi Katie! I haven’t found my perfect GF blend for this, but I’m certain you could use a whole wheat pastry flour. For GF, you might try buckwheat. I’ve gone with rice flour but they crumble too easily…
Nov 15, 2012 · 9:45 AM
Hi Stella,
Please include measurements in grams as well. When I use an online calculator, I get 56 g for 2 oz. Is that right for the sugar?
R
· Radhika · sinsationscakes.wordpress.com
Nov 15, 2012 · 10:24 AM
Hi Radhika! I don’t use grams myself, so I’d be calculating just like you. For gram conversions, those online calculators are pretty safe. 2 ounces is 56 grams, you got it.
Jan 18, 2013 · 2:15 PM
These look delicious and so versatile! Nice photos. Thanks for sharing!
· Jessica · www.thebitesizedblog.com
Jan 19, 2013 · 10:06 AM
Hi Jessica! I have Sarah Jane to thank for the photos. The baked tarts also store really well in the freezer. They’re super handy!
Feb 24, 2013 · 1:16 AM
Hi Nana! Thanks for following. I’m glad you’re enjoying the macaron tips. Kisses right back atcha!
Feb 24, 2013 · 2:27 PM
Hi Ela! Tart shells made with the 123 dough store really well in the freezer. You could stash them there for months. At room temperature, they’ll only last a few days, or about a week in the fridge. In all cases, make sure they’re stored in an airtight container!
Jun 03, 2013 · 11:29 PM
I cannot tell you how wonderful it has been for me to find your blog/site. You are a constant inspiration and are helping me to realize my dream of having my own custom bakery in a small town in the Midwest. Thank you, BraveTart! You are the best! Your recipes rock and so do you!
· jayneleni · www.lovebutterbakery.com
Jun 05, 2013 · 9:19 AM
@jayneleni, aw! I’m happy to share whatever I can, and glad that’s made a difference to you. Good luck in the pursuit of your bakery, it’s a huge challenge (I’ve helped others do it, though I’ve never owned my own), but can be so rewarding too.
Hi New@This, Oops, sorry for not being more specific! Docking is just taking a fork (or other pokey-object) and perforating the dough; this helps the dough bake evenly, rather than puffing up here and there with air pockets, etc. You don’t have to go crazy or anything, maybe just a fork mark every 1/2” or so, in all directions. Hope that helps!