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strawberry tart with pastry cream

Strawberry tart recipe with pastry cream

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Make this delicious strawberry tart with crisp shortcrust pastry, almond cream, strawberry confit and vanilla custard. This strawberry tart is a great dessert to finish a meal. It's to die for !
SERVING:8
TOTAL TIME1 hour
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Course: Cakes, Dessert
Cuisine: French
Author: Rachida

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.