Strawberry tart
This French strawberry tart starts with an almond-scented pâte sucrée (a sweet, crumbly crust that snaps like a butter cookie), then a layer of smooth, rich vanilla pastry cream and a crown of bright red strawberries under a glossy jam glaze. Every bite is crisp, creamy and juicy all at once. It's the perfect tart for strawberry season or a small get-together.
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Prep
- 50 min
- Cook
- 40 min
- Rising or chilling
- 3 hr 20 min
- Total time
- 4 hr 50 min
- Method
- Oven-baked
Ingredients
For the pâte sucrée crust
For the vanilla pastry cream (crème pâtissière)
For the strawberries and glaze
Instructions
Step 1
Beat 110 g softened unsalted butter with 70 g powdered sugar and a pinch salt on low speed until combined, then add 36 g egg yolks and beat for a few more seconds. Mixing slowly keeps you from beating too much air into the butter, so the crust turns out fine and firm. The mixture is ready when it's smooth as cream with no sugar grains left.
Step 2
Add 200 g all-purpose flour and 25 g almond flour, then use a flat spatula to smear and fold until the dough just comes together. Mixing as little as possible keeps the crust short and crisp instead of tough or prone to shrinking. The dough is ready when it gathers into a soft mass with no streaks of dry flour.
Step 3
Press the dough into a flat disc about two centimeters thick, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour. Firm butter makes the dough easier to roll and helps it hold its shape in the pan. It's ready when it feels firm in your hand and no longer sticks to your fingers.
Step 4
Roll the dough between two sheets of parchment paper into a round about three millimeters thick, ease it into a 23 cm tart pan, press it snugly into the bottom corners, then roll the rolling pin across the top of the pan to trim off the excess. Prick the bottom a few times with a fork. The holes let steam escape so the bottom doesn't puff up. The shell is ready when it hugs the sides of the pan and is evenly thick all around.
Step 5
Put the lined pan in the freezer for about twenty minutes. A shell that's frozen before baking keeps its sides straight instead of slumping. It's ready when it feels as hard as cardboard to the touch.
Step 6
Heat the oven to 175°C with a rack in the middle, and have a sheet of parchment paper and pie weights or dried beans ready. A moderate temperature lets the shell bake to an even golden color without scorching the edges. The oven is ready when the heating light turns off for the first time.
Step 7
Line the shell with parchment paper, fill the bottom with pie weights or dried beans and bake at 175°C for about 15 to 18 minutes. The weight keeps the bottom from puffing and the sides from sliding down. This step is done when the edges of the shell are just turning pale golden.
Step 8
Lift out the parchment and weights, bake the empty shell at 175°C for another 8 to 12 minutes, then let it cool in the pan. This second bake dries out the bottom so it won't soak up moisture from the cream. The shell is done when the whole bottom is an even golden brown and sounds crisp when you tap it gently.
Step 9
Heat 400 g whole milk until it steams, and meanwhile whisk 72 g egg yolks with 80 g granulated sugar and 35 g cornstarch. Slowly pour the hot milk into the eggs, pour everything back into the saucepan and stir constantly over medium heat, then take it off the heat and add 25 g unsalted butter and 5 g vanilla extract. Constant stirring keeps the cream from turning lumpy or scorching on the bottom. The cream is ready when it has bubbled for about a minute and is as thick as mayonnaise.
Step 10
Spread the cream on a tray, press plastic wrap directly onto its surface and refrigerate for about two hours. Wrap that touches the cream stops a dry skin from forming. The cream is ready when it's completely cold and turns smooth and supple when you whisk it again.
Step 11
Whisk the cold cream until loose, spread it evenly in the shell, then arrange 450 g fresh strawberries, washed, patted dry and halved, in circles from the outside in. The berries need to be very dry so they don't weep juice onto the cream. The top is done when the berries cover it completely in snug, even rows.
Step 12
Warm 50 g fruit jam with 10 g water over low heat until melted, strain it through a sieve and brush it lightly over the strawberries while it's still warm. The jam keeps the berries fresh and shiny and stops them from drying out. The tart is finished when the berries are glossy and no drops of jam are pooling on the cream.
Equipment
- Oven
- Tart pan
- Rolling pin
- Hand mixer
- Small saucepan
- Whisk
- Spatula
- Kitchen scale
- Plastic wrap
- Parchment paper
- Pastry brush
- Refrigerator
Tips
- You can bake the shell a day ahead and keep it in an airtight container; just add the cream and strawberries no more than a few hours before serving.
- Brush a thin layer of melted white chocolate over the bottom of the cooled shell to make a moisture barrier that keeps the crust crisp for longer.
- Choosing strawberries of similar size makes the top look neater and the tart easier to slice cleanly.
Storage
The tart is best the day it's made, but if needed you can keep it loosely covered in the fridge for up to two days. The crust will gradually soften as it absorbs moisture from the cream and strawberries.
Common problems and how to fix them
- The sides of the shell slumped during baking.
- The dough wasn't cold enough or there wasn't enough weight in it. Give the shell its full time in the freezer and fill the pie weights all the way up against the sides of the pan.
- The pastry cream is grainy.
- The eggs cooked too fast because the milk went in too quickly or the heat was too high. Strain the cream through a sieve while it's still hot, and next time pour the milk in a thin stream.
This recipe is based on the common ratios for this bake and is written entirely in our own words.
