FRUIT TART

I've been experimenting with some ingredients and recipes these last few weeks to figure out what I'll be serving on the menu for Easter. I wanted something fresh for dessert considering Easter is the main holiday in Spring. Well, I came to a conclusion,,, we’ve got fresh fruit tart on the dessert menu! I’ve been waiting for a long time to make and post this recipe. I love fruit tarts. If you’ve never tried a fruit tart, you are definitely missing out! It is heavenly! This tart is a fabulous way to use up your favorite fruit of the season. Each bite will be an explosion of incredible flavor, a variety of textures, and fruity freshness in your mouth. With each bite you get a crunchy pastry dough, a bite of sweet vanilla pastry cream, and a piece of your favorite fresh fruit. It’s cool, creamy and packed with fruit. The perfect end to a delicious spring or summer meal.

Ingredients:

Pastry Cream

• 2 Cups milk

• 1 Cup sugar

• 2 eggs

• 3 tblspns flour

• 1/2 tspn vanilla sugar

• 1/2 stick unsalted butter

Crust

• 1 egg yolk

• 1 tablespoon heavy cream

• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

• 2/3 cup powdered sugar

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 8 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

Optional Glaze: 2 Tablespoons orange or apricot preserves mixed with 1 Tablespoon water

Directions:

Pastry Cream:

1. In a saucepan, whisk first four ingredients. Bring to boil, continuously stirring.

2. Remove from heat, add butter and mix in well.

3. Place in fridge. Let cool & thicken before using.

Crust:

1. Preheat oven to 375F.

2. Whisk together the yolk, cream and vanilla in a small bowl and set aside.

3. Place the flour, sugar and salt in a food processor and process briefly to combine.

4. Scatter the butter pieces over the flour mixture and process to cut the butter until the mixture is well blended.

5. With the machine running, add the egg mixture and process until the dough just comes together, about 15 seconds.

6. Turn the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap, top with another sheet of plastic wrap, and roll out into as much of a circular shape as you can.

7. Transfer the dough to a 9- to 9½-inch tart pan. Using your hands, press the dough into the pan corners and against the sides of the pan. If some sections of the edge are too thin, patch them by using the excess dough from other parts.

8. Prick the bottom and sides of the dough all over with a fork.

9. Set the dough-lined tart pan on a baking sheet, spray a smaller baking pan with cooking spray and place in middle of tart pan. Bake for 30 minutes, turn halfway through the baking time to cook evenly. Remove from the oven and carefully remove the baking pan from the center of the crust.

10. Return to oven and continue to bake until deep golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes longer.

11. Remove from oven and set the tart shell aside to cool to room temperature. In the meantime, slice your fruits!

Glaze(Optional):

1. Cook apricot jam for 2 minutes until thin. Strain any chunks out with a strainer.

Assemble the Tart:

1. Once tart has cooled, spread the cold pastry cream over the bottom of the tart shell and even it out gently using a spatula.

2. Arrange the fruits of your choice not op of the tart.

3. If glazing, carefully brush the glaze on the fruit using a cooking brush.

4. Remove the outer ring of the tart pan and place the tart onto a serving platter and serve. You can refrigerate before serving for a few hours.

If you make this recipe, be sure to snap a photo and hashtag it #EATDRINKPLAYLA. I'd love to see how yours turned out!