We love making our tried and true favorites in the kitchen, but sometimes we love to try something new and push ourselves to make something a little out of our wheelhouse. This tart is absolutely beautiful and is pure perfection with its deliciously simple pastry crème and glazed strawberries. It’s similar to this tart, but there’s something about the fresh strawberries that freshens this dessert up and makes us things of all things sunshine and happy times we could all use more of that, right?! While this recipe takes a little time, the result is really something special and we know you’ll love it just as much as we do!
Strawberry Tart
Yields 1 9-inch tart
Ingredients
Shell:
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, cold, cubed
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup ice water
- 1 egg
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Filling:
- 2 pints strawberries, washed, hulled and halved
- 3/4 cup apricot jam, optional
Pastry Cream:
- 4 extra-large egg yolks
- 1 1/4 cups milk, divided
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 pinch salt
Directions
- Combine flour, sugar and salt in food processor and pulse together.
- Add in cold cubed butter and egg and pulse until coarse and crumbly, then slowly add ice water and pulse until dough comes together.
- Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and form into a 6-7-inch disc,
- Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350º F.
- Roll dough back out onto lightly floured surface into a 12-inch circle. Transfer to a tart pan or springform pan.
- Gently press dough into the pan and fold over excess. Take a fork to pierce holes in the dough and refrigerate 15 minutes.
- Place dough in oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown.
- For the pastry cream: beat together egg yolks, 3 tablespoons milk, sugar and salt in a bowl for several minutes, or until thick.
- Mix in cornstarch and transfer mixture to a saucepan.
- Heat remaining milk in a separate saucepan over low heat.
- While whisking continuously, gradually pour warmed milk into egg yolk mixture, along with vanilla extract, and cook over medium heat.
- Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes, or until thickened. (Don’t worry if it looks like it’s curdling, just keep stirring.)
- Stir in heavy cream, then pour cream through a strainer into a large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap (directly touching the cream) and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.
- Once cold, whip pastry cream until smooth, then spread it out into the pastry shell and smooth over the top.
- Arrange the strawberries cut side down on top of the cream.
- Heat apricot jam over medium-low heat until liquid-y, then pour it evenly over the strawberries and let cool before serving.
Note: tart is best served the day it’s made.
Recipe adapted from Food & Wine