As soon as strawberry season returns, it’s hard to resist the urge to make a delicious strawberry tart with pastry cream. With its crispy, perfectly crumbly tart base and juicy strawberries, it’s the quintessential springtime dessert.
Alongside the fraisier cake, it’s one of the two iconic French strawberry-based desserts everyone loves. Their fame has spread far beyond our borders and conquered taste buds around the world. Who hasn’t given in to the irresistible temptation of a slice of fraisier or a delicious homemade strawberry tart? Probably no one!
Table of Contents
Tips and Tricks
To make a homemade strawberry tart worthy of the best pastry shops, it all comes down to the tart base: it should be crumbly, crisp, and perfectly golden. I always use Pierre Hermé’s sweet pastry recipe, a staple for achieving the perfect texture and exceptional flavor.
Make-Ahead Tips
You can prepare the sweet pastry and bake the tart shell ahead of time. They freeze beautifully for up to 2 months, even with the almond cream baked in. On the day of serving, all that’s left to do is fill it!
To Keep the Tart Shell Crispy
Fruits tend to make the pastry soggy, causing it to lose its crisp texture. To prevent this, I recommend baking a thin layer of almond cream in the tart shell, it will help absorb the moisture.
Alternatively, you can coat the baked shell with a bit of melted cocoa butter or white chocolate, or brush it with egg white halfway through baking to create a protective barrier.
Video recipe
Ingredients for a 8.5-inch (22 cm) strawberry tart:
Note: Find the printable recipe card at the end of the article.
Sweet pastry
You’ll only need half, keep the rest.
- 250 g T55 flour (8.8 oz )(I used all-purpose flour because I didn’t have T55)
- 150 g very soft butter (5.3 oz )
- 95 g powdered sugar (3.4 oz )
- 35 g almond powder (1.2 oz )
- 50 g eggs (1.8 oz )
- 1 g salt ( 1/3 teaspoon)
- 1 vanilla bean or vanilla powder
Egg Wash
- 1 egg yolk ( 20g / 0.7 oz)
- 2 teaspoons heavy cream ( 5 g / 0.2 oz)
Pastry Cream
- 250 ml milk (8.8 oz)
- 60 g sugar (2 oz)
- 50 g egg yolks ( 1.8 oz)
- 15 g flour (0.5 oz)
- 15 g cornstarch (0.5 oz)
- 25 g butter (0.9 oz)
- 1 vanilla bean
Almond Cream
- 50 g soft butter (1.8 oz)
- 50 g sugar (1.8 oz)
- 50 g almond powder (1.8 oz)
- 50 g eggs (1.8 oz)
Strawberry Confit
- 165 g strawberries, chopped into small pieces (5.8 oz )
- 25 g sugar (0.9 oz )
For Finishing
- 750 g strawberries (26.5 oz )
- a bit of chopped and whole pistachios
- a bit of neutral glaze
- sugar paste flowers
Preparation steps:
The sweet pastry
Make your tart shell following the detailed recipe in images or video 👉 the sweet pastry recipe. I recommend making the full quantity of sweet pastry and freezing half for another time, it’s super convenient.
Cream butter and sifted powdered sugar.
Add salt, vanilla beans and almond powder. Mix and scrape the bottom of the mixing bowl.
Add the egg, mix and then add the sifted flour. Mix briefly without trying to knead or gather into a ball.
Turn the dough onto the work surface and “fraser” it with the palm of your hand in 2/3 back and forth motions to bring it all together.
Note: “Fraser” is a French culinary term that refers to a technique used in pastry making, particularly for sweet pastry dough. It involves smearing the dough across the work surface with the heel of your hand to fully incorporate the ingredients without overworking the dough.
Gather the dough into a ball and divide it in half. Wrap in plastic film and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. It would be best to make it the day before for the next day.
The next day, or after 2 hours of refrigeration, roll out the dough to 2 or 3 mm thick.
Line an 8.5-inch (22 cm) tart ring using the traditional lining technique or Gianluca Fusto’s method (see the comprehensive article on sweet pastry). Freeze for 1 hour before baking.
Pastry cream
In the meantime, prepare the pastry cream by going to the article, the recipe is in step-by-step images for more details or simply follow the method below.
Put some of the 60 g (2 oz) of sugar in a saucepan and pour the milk over it. This prevents the custard from sticking to the bottom of the saucepan.
Split the vanilla pod in half and scrape out the seeds. Put the beans and the pod in the milk.
Bring milk to the boil. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar until pale.
Add the cornstarch and flour, mix well without whisking.
Pour the hot milk over the egg mixture through a sieve, then mix to dilute it. Pour back into the saucepan.
Bring to the boil and thicken, stirring constantly.
Remove the pastry cream from the heat when it starts to make bubbles (air bubbles bursting); this indicates that it is well-cooked.
Off the heat, add the butter cubes and mix well. Pour into a dish and cover it with cling film directly on the surface. Let cool in the refrigerator.
Almond Cream Filling
Cream the softened butter and sugar together until smooth.
Add the almond powder and mix while gradually adding the beaten egg. Mix gently without whisking, otherwise, the almond cream will puff up during baking.
Transfer to a piping bag or cover it with plastic wrap in the bowl. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.
Baking the tart shells
Preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F) with fan, or 165°C (330°F) in a conventional oven.
Bake the tart shell for 15 minutes. Remove it as soon as it’s lightly golden. Take off the tart ring and let it cool slightly.
Remove any irregularities with the back of a small sieve (see sweet pastry recipe) Brush the sides of the tart with egg wash, then fill with almond cream.
Return to the oven for 15 min more or less, until the tart is golden brown and the almond cream has turned a light golden color.
Remove the tart from the oven, take off the tart ring, and let it cool while you prepare the strawberry compote.
Prepare the strawberry confit
Place the sugar and diced strawberries in a saucepan. Mix well.
Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce to a thick jam.
Filling and finishing
Spread the strawberry compote over the almond cream.
Whip the pastry cream to smooth it. You can use an immersion blender. Preferably, transfer it to a piping bag.
Fill the tart and smooth the top with an offset spatula.
Select strawberries of the same size and cut in half.
Garnish the tart with strawberries in any arrangement you like.
Apply a little neutral glaze to give a glossy finish and protect the strawberries from oxidation.
Decorate with pistachios and small sugar-paste flowers.
Place it on a golden serving plate and transfer it onto a platter. Leave in the fridge until ready to serve.
Tips of storage :
I recommend enjoying this tart on the same day, but it will keep perfectly for up to 2 days in the fridge without the sweet pastry losing its crispness.
You can prepare the sweet pastry and bake the tart shell in advance. The sweet pastry or the baked tart shell with almond cream can be frozen for up to 2 months without any issue. On the big day, or if a sudden tart craving strikes, simply take your tart shell out of the freezer and fill it.
Other pie recipes:
Strawberry tart recipe with pastry cream
INGREDIENTS
Sweet Pastry
- You'll only need half. Keep the rest.
- 250 g T55 flour (8.8 oz) I used all-purpose flour because I didn't have T55
- 150 g very soft butter (5.3 oz)
- 95 g powdered sugar (3.4 oz)
- 35 g almond powder (1.2 oz)
- 50 g eggs (1.8 oz)
- 1 g salt 1/3 teaspoon
- 1 vanilla bean or vanilla powder
Egg Wash
- 1 egg yolk (20g / 0.7 oz)
- 2 teaspoons heavy cream (5 g / 0.2 oz)
Pastry Cream
- 250 ml milk (8.8 oz)
- 60 g sugar (2 oz)
- 50 g egg yolks (1.8 oz)
- 15 g flour (0.5 oz)
- 15 g cornstarch (0.5 oz)
- 25 g butter (0.9 oz)
- 1 vanilla bean
Almond Cream
- 50 g soft butter (1.8 oz)
- 50 g sugar (1.8 oz)
- 50 g almond powder (1.8 oz)
- 50 g eggs (1.8 oz)
Strawberry Confit
- 165 g strawberries chopped into small pieces (5.8 oz )
- 25 g sugar (0.9 oz)
For Finishing
- 750 g strawberries (26.5 oz)
- a bit of chopped and whole pistachios
- a bit of neutral glaze
- sugar paste flowers
PREPARATION
Sweet pastry
- Cream butter and sifted powdered sugar.
- Add salt, vanilla beans and almond powder. Mix and scrape the bottom of the mixing bowl.
- Add the egg, mix and then add the sifted flour. Mix briefly without trying to knead or gather into a ball.
- Turn the dough onto the work surface and "fraser" it with the palm of your hand in 2/3 back and forth motions to bring it all together.
- NB: "Fraser" is a French culinary term that refers to a technique used in pastry making, particularly for sweet pastry dough. It involves smearing the dough across the work surface with the heel of your hand to fully incorporate the ingredients without overworking the dough.
- Gather the dough into a ball and divide it in half. Wrap in plastic film and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. It would be best to make it the day before for the next day.
- The next day, or after 2 hours of refrigeration, roll out the dough to 2 or 3 mm thick.
- Line an 8.5-inch (22 cm) tart ring using the traditional technique or Gianluca Fusto's method (see the comprehensive article on sweet pastry). Freeze for 1 hour before baking.
Pastry cream
- In the meantime, prepare the pastry cream by going to the article, the recipe is in step-by-step images for more details or simply follow the method below.
- Put some of the 60 g (2 oz) sugar in a saucepan and pour over the milk. This prevents the custard from sticking to the bottom of the saucepan.
- Split the vanilla pod in half and scrape out the seeds. Put the beans and the pod in the milk.
- Bring milk to the boil. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar until pale.
- Add the cornstarch and flour, mix well without whisking.
- Pour the hot milk over the egg mixture through a sieve, then mix to dilute it. Pour back into the saucepan.
- Bring to the boil and thicken, stirring constantly.
- Remove the pastry cream from the heat when it starts to make bubbles (air bubbles bursting); this indicates that it is well-cooked.
- Off the heat, add the butter cubes and mix well. Pour into a dish and cover it with cling film directly on the surface. Let cool in the refrigerator.
Almond cream
- Cream the softened butter and sugar together until smooth.
- Add the almond powder and mix while gradually adding the beaten egg. Mix gently without whisking, otherwise, the almond cream will puff up during baking.
- Transfer to a piping bag or cover it with plastic wrap in the bowl. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.
Baking the tart shells
- Preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F) with fan, or 165°C (330°F) in a conventional oven.
- Bake the tart shell for 15 minutes. Remove it as soon as it’s lightly golden. Take off the tart ring and let it cool slightly.
- Remove any irregularities using the back of a sieve (see the sweet pastry recipe). Brush the sides of the tart with the egg wash, then fill with almond cream.
- Return to the oven for 15 min more or less, until the tart is golden brown and the almond cream has turned a light golden color.
- Remove the tart from the oven, take off the tart ring, and let it cool while you prepare the strawberry compote.
Strawberry confit
- Place the sugar and diced strawberries in a saucepan. Mix well.
- Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce to a thick jam.
Finishing strawberry tart
- Spread the strawberry compote over the almond cream.
- Whip the pastry cream to smooth it. You can use an immersion blender. Preferably, transfer it to a piping bag.
- Fill the tart and smooth the top with an offset spatula.
- Select strawberries of the same size and cut in half.
- Garnish the tart with strawberries in any arrangement you like.
- Apply a little neutral glaze to give a glossy finish and protect the strawberries from oxidation.
- Decorate with pistachios and small sugar-paste flowers.
- Place it on a golden serving plate and transfer it onto a platter. Leave in the fridge until ready to serve.
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