During the month of July we had to say goodbye to a good friend who was returning back to sunny California for his job. I decided to have a small farewell dinner to wish him well. While making a trip to my favorite grocery store, I couldn't help but notice the luscious organic strawberries and decided to make a berry tart. This almost resulted in a big disaster on my part! I didn't realize how much time it takes to make a fresh berry tart. You have to leave time for the pastry dough to chill and the sweet pastry cream also needs time to chill and set after it cooks. Once the shell is baked, it needs to sit until it's cold. I barely had enough time to complete the tart and chill it briefly for serving. Even then, it could have used some more chilling time. From start to finish, it took me about 2 hours to complete. But my guests didn't complain, so I ended up with a berry happy ending.
The recipe I used is called Fresh Fruit Tartlets from the cookbook "Perfect Fruit Desserts" by Anne Willian.
I made one large tart instead of the 8 tartlets the recipe yields. Perhaps if I made individual tartlets, the filling would have set better because they would have needed less time to chill and set. Since the recipe is very extensive I have scanned it and I will gladly email a copy of it to anyone who wants it. For now, I am only going to share my pictures and the final result (sorry, picture only!).
This is the flour into which you have made a well and added salt, egg yolks, sugar and vanilla for the pastry shell.
You use a rolling pin to pound the butter to soften it slightly.
Softened butter added to the well.
You work the ingredients in the well with your fingertips until thoroughly mixed into a ball. Then you lightly work the dough until it is very smooth, about 1 - 2 minutes and reshape into a ball. Once the dough has chilled for at least 30 minutes, it can be rolled and formed into tartlets or one large tart. Then you have to let them chill again till firm, around another 30 minutes. Then it can finally be baked and cooled before adding the pastry cream.
A vanilla bean is added to boiled milk and the liquid sits for 10 - 15 minutes for flavor. You can use vanilla extract if you prefer.
The finished pastry cream after the other ingredients (egg yolks, flour and sugar) have been added and cooked for the appropriate time. The pastry cream needs time to cool before adding to the shell.
The cooled shell is filled halfway with the pastry cream, the berries are arranged on the top and then the berries are brushed with an red currant jelly glaze to make the fruit look nice and shiny.
Doesn't this look lovely?
Lesson learned: Don't forget to make sure you have enough time to complete a recipe before you make it and serve it.
Just a P.S. - Don't throw those egg whites away when making this recipe! They can be used for an egg white omelet, making coconut macaroons, meringue cookies or angel food cake just to name a few options!
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