Makes One 10” Tart
½ Recipe Pate Sucre
For The Sweet Potato Filling
1½ Cups Baked Sweet Potato Pulp, About 3 Sweet Potatoes
¼ Cup Brown Sugar, Firmly Packed
2 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar
1 Large Egg, Vigorously Beaten with a Fork
1 Tablespoon Heavy Cream
1 Tablespoon Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature
1 Tablespoon Pure Vanilla Extract
½ Teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
¼ Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1/8 Teaspoon Freshly Grated Nutmeg
1/8 Teaspoon All-Spice
For The Pecan Topping
¾ Cup Granulated Sugar
¾ Cup Dark Corn Syrup
1 Large Egg
1½ Tablespoons Unsalted Butter, Melted and Cooled
2 Teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract
¼ Teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
¼ Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1 Cup Pecan Pieces
3 Cups Pecan Halves
Preheat Oven to 325°F.
On a lightly flour surface roll out the paté sucre to 1/8” thick. Transfer to a 10” tart pan with removable bottom. Crimp the edges at least 1/2″ above the rim of the tart pan. Refrigerate until ready to fill.
For The Sweet Potato Filling: Place all of the sweet potato filling ingredients into the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until smooth, about 3 or 5 minutes. Set aside.
For The Pecan Topping: In a clean bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment combine all of the topping ingredients except the pecans. Mix thoroughly on low speed until the syrup is opaque, about 1 minute. Remove 1/4 cup of the mixture and set aside. Stir in the 1 cup pecan pieces into the rest of the topping.
To Assemble: Remove the tart pan from the refrigerator and spoon the sweet potato filling evenly into the pastry lined tart pan. Pour the pecan topping over the sweet potato filling. (Do not pour the syrupy topping all the way to the top of the crust. Leave a little room for expansion.) Toss the half pecans with the reserved 1/4 cup topping and gently place pecans in a concentric circle starting on the outer edge and working towards the center (see photo).
Place tart on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper (preferably a pizza pan with holes) and bake for 1 1/4 hours or until filling is set and crust is golden brown. Remove the tart from the oven to a cooling rack. Cool completely before removing the pan rim.
Serve plain or with white chocolate whipped cream or whipped creme fraiche.
