Strawberry Tart
It is not summer anymore here in England but strawberries are still available everywhere. They are fragrant, insanely sweet, and their colour is so vibrant that I always end up picking up a packet or two on every shopping trip. I find it extremely hard to resist them.
This fabulous tart recipe makes a great showpiece dessert whenever I make it, but believe me they are surprisingly simple to make. A vanilla infused pastry cream is mixed with whipped double cream and layered inside a crunchy buttery tart case then strawberries are arranged in a simple pattern on top.
This tart tastes and looks best when it is assembled just before serving, so make sure you make the tart shell and pastry cream well ahead and keep them ready, so that the tart can be put together in the last minute for a fresh dessert.
You could sprinkle some icing sugar on top of the strawberries if you wish, but I like to let the strawberries shine without any added extra sugar.
Tart Case
Whole meal flour-100g
Plain flour-200g
Salt-1/2 teaspoon
Sugar- 1 teaspoon
Butter-100g
Egg -1
Water-1 tablespoon
Method
- Mix plain flour, plain with salt and sugar in a bowl.
- Add cold butter cut into small pieces to the flour and rub with your finger tips until you get a sandy texture.
- Mix egg with water and add to the above mixture, mix well until everything clumbs together. Knead lightly.
- Cover with a cling film and chill in the fridge for 20 minutes.
- Roll the pastry thin and layer a tart tin. Chill the tart shell for 20 minutes.
- Blind bake the pastry – (Line the inside of the pastry shell with parchment paper and fill with baking beans.Bake in a pre-heated oven (190°C) until the sides start to brown.Remove the baking beans and bake again until the pastry is cooked).
- Remove from the oven and cool the pastry.
Filling
Pastry cream
Milk- 100 ml
Vanilla bean-1/2
Egg yolk-1
Sugar-1 tablespoons
Plain flour- 1 teaspoon
Corn flour- 1 teaspoon
Whipped cream (Creme chantilly)
Whipping cream 200ml
Powder sugar-2 tablespoons
Method
- Heat milk with vanilla bean and leave to infuse the flavour .
- Whisk egg yolk with sugar until pale and creamy. Add plain flour and corn flour and mix well.
- Add the vanilla infused milk mixture, mix and cook over a medium flame until the custard is thick and cooked through. Remove the vanilla bean and chill it in the fridge covered with cling film.
- Whisk the whipping cream and powder sugar together and then mix with the cooled pastry cream.
Assembling the tart
- Fill a piping bag with the chilled cream mixture and pipe inside the baked tart shell.
- Cut the strawberries in half and layer on top of the cream until the whole area is covered.
- Remove from the baking tin and serve.
