GoldenDelights

Fresh berry tart

These mini tarts are well worth the effort if you want to impress guests for a special occasions.

You can prepare the tart shells and diplomat cream the day before and assemble the tarts the day you have guests.

Ingredients

Crust

Diplomat cream

  • All-purpose flour 150g
  • Unsalted butter 110g, at room temperature
  • Granulated sugar 55g
  • Salt, a pinch (1/8 teaspoon)
  • Egg yolk, 1
  • Lemon zest
  • Whole milk 200g
  • Egg yolks 40g
  • Corn starch 15g
  • Sugar 40g
  • Vanilla extract 1.2g (½ teaspoon)
  • Heavy whipping cream 150g

Filling

  • Your choice of fresh berries, about 400g

Procedure

To make the crust

  1. Combine the butter, sugar, salt and lemon zest in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix until smooth with the flat beater attachment.
  2. Add the egg yolk and mix until completely incorporated, scraping down the bottom of the bowl.
  3. Add the flour and mix until combined.
  4. Tilt the bowl on a lightly floured surface and shape the dough into a ball.
  5. Wrap the dough into plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
  6. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and roll it to a thickness of about 3-4mm. Gently lift the dough and put it into mini tart pans previously buttered. This dough is quite soft and it will break. Don’t be tempted to add too much flour, you can patch the dough in the pan and it will not be noticeable once cooked.
  7. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.

8. Prick the crust all over with a fork. Cover the dough with parchment paper and fill it with pie weights.

9. Bake for 15 minutes at 180oC, then remove the pie weights and parchment paper and continue baking for another 7-8 minutes until golden brown. 10. Remove from the oven and place on a rack to cool.

To make the diplomat cream

  1. Put 2 bowls in the freezer to cool down.
  2. In a small pot combine the milk and vanilla and gently heat just until boiling.
  3. In a separate pot combine the egg yolks, sugar and corn starch and mix until fully combined (do not heat yet).
  4. Pour some of the hot milk in the pot with the egg yolk mixture and mix until smooth, then add the remaining milk.
  5. Put the egg yolk and milt mixture on the stove and cook until thickened, mixing continuously.
  6. Turn the heat off and mix vigorously, then transfer into one of the cold bowls from the freezer.
  7. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
  8. Take the other bowl from the freezer and pour the whipping cream, mixing until whipped.
  9. Remove the bowl with the cream from the refrigerator, add 2 tablespoons of the whipped cream and mix vigorously to fully incorporate, then add the remaining whipping cream and mix gently until uniform.
  10. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

To assemble the tarts

  1. Transfer the diplomat cream to a pastry bag and pipe into the tart shells.
  2. Add your favorite mix of berries (I used strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and red currants here) in your favorite pattern.
  3. You can dust with confectioners’ sugar, cover it with gelatin or leave as is.
  4. Refrigerate for a couple of hours before serving.
  5. You can store the tarts in the fridge in a sealed container for 2 days.