Tartes Aux Fraises Strawberry Tarts France Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350F (180C).
• Make filling by mixing the sugar & ground almonds together in a bowl. Then blend in the softened butter, egg, flour & rum (or kirsch). Set aside in a cool place.
• Make bases by rolling out the puff pastry into 4 circles of equal diameter (approx 4-in). Prick the circles well using the tines of a fork, leaving a 1/4-in circular border. Spread almond cream filling over the pastry & allow to sit for a few minutes.
• Bake for 20 minutes, remove from oven & allow to fully cool. Wash, drain, hull & thinly slice strawberries while bases are cooking & cooling.
• You are essentially done at this point & can set aside the bases & strawberries for final assembly at your pleasure. To Assemble: Arrange strawberries on the bases in rosette shapes, sprinkle w/powdered sugar & serve immediately. (So easy! Was I right or not?).

Steps:

• Beat the butter and sugar together until smooth, but not fluffy. Mix in the egg until combined, then add the flour. Bring together with your hands to form a dough. Wrap and chill in the fridge for 30 mins.
• Dust a surface with flour and roll out the pastry to a 26cm circle (or 3cm bigger than your tin). Line a 23cm fluted tart tin with the pastry, leaving an overhang. Prick the base with a fork to stop any air bubbles forming. Chill for 30 mins.
• Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Line the pastry case with a scrunched up sheet of baking parchment and baking beans, then bake for 15 mins. Remove the parchment and beans and bake for 15-20 mins more until crisp and golden. Leave in the tin to cool.
• To make the crème pâtissière, heat the milk, cream and vanilla in a pan over a medium heat, stirring occasionally. Bring up to a simmer. Meanwhile, whisk the yolks and sugar in a bowl for 3 mins until pale, then stir in the cornflour until combined. Pour a quarter of the hot cream over the egg mix, whisking continuously, then pour the warm egg mix into the pan with the rest of the cream. Stir over a low-medium heat for 5-8 mins until the crème pâtissière thickens. Transfer to a large bowl and cool for 15 mins, whisking occasionally. Gradually whisk in the butter until smooth, cover and put in the fridge until needed.
• Beat the strawberry jam to loosen it, then spread over the bottom of the pastry case. Put the crème pâtissière into a piping bag and pipe in a spiral on top of the jam. Arrange the strawberries on top in a pattern. Heat the apricot jam in a small pan with 1 tbsp water until warm. Whisk to loosen the jam, then leave to cool slightly. Brush over the top of the strawberries.

Steps:

• First make your pastry. Place the flour and sugar in a food processor and whizz for thirty seconds. Turn the processor back on and add the chilled butter and finally the egg. If the pastry needs a little more liquid add a spot of water until the dough rolls cleanly round the bowl. Wrap your pastry in Clingfilm and chill for half an hour whilst you prepare the tartlet tins and strawberries.
• Taste one of your strawberries to judge their sweetness. If they are sweet and luscious, as fraises des bois generally are, they will only need hulling, rinsing and a final dressing with the sugar syrup. If they're a little too tart, rinse them, lay them on a plate and sprinkle with caster sugar to give them a bit of a boost.
• Pre-heat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.
• Butter your barquette or round tart tins, take the pastry out of the fridge and roll it out. Line each tin and prick the bottoms well. Bake in the oven for about fifteen to twenty minutes, but keep an eye on them, they may need pricking again. Leave to cool.
• Make a simple sugar syrup by boiling two tablespoons of caster sugar with the water for two minutes or so. Allow to cool. Mix the icing sugar & vanilla essence with the crème fraiche and chill.
• When you are ready to serve your barquettes/tarts, spread them with crème fraiche mixture; sit the strawberries on top and brush with the glaze.