The One of A Kind

Fruit Tart (Recipe requested by S.C.)

Ingredients

CRUST

22g (8 oz) unsalted butter
150g ( 5 1/3 oz) castor sugar
3 eggs
500g ( 1lb 1 1/2 oz) bread flour

PASTRY CREAM
2 cups ( 500ml / 16 fl oz) fresh milk
1 tsp vanilla essence
4 egg yolks
125 g (4 1/2 oz) castor sugar
50 g (1 2/3 oz) corn flour (cornstarch)
100 g (3 1/2 oz) butter

FILLING
some melted chocolate
fruit of your choice
apricot jam, warmed and mixed with a little water to glaze

*beans

METHOD

1. Prepare crust. Cream butter and sugar until smooth. Add eggs one at a time followed by flour. Roll dough into balls and cover with plastic wrap. Leave to chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours before rolling out thinly to line tartlet tins OR the huge tart pan.
   
2. Bake blind, covered with aluminium foil and filled with beans (you can use nuts - almonds or hazelnuts, for a more aromatic flavour to your crust) in an oven oreheated to 175 degrees celsius fir about 10 mins until crust is golden and base dry. Discard foil and beans. leave crust to cool.
   
3. Prepare pastry cream. In a saucepan, bring milk and vanilla essence to a simmer. In a bowl beat egg yolks, sugar and corn flour into a smooth custard. Slowly add hot milk. Pour custard back into saucepan and continue cooking over low heat until thick and bubbly. Add butter and turn off the heat. Leave to cool slightly before refrigerating to chill.
   
4. Start assembling tarts when pastry cream is sufficiently chilled. Brush melted chocolate over the base of pastry shells. This keeps the pastry from becoming soggy when the pastry cream is added. Pipe in pastry cream and decorate with fruit.
   
5. Brush tarts with warm, melted apricot jam heated with a little water to keep the fruit fresh.

the end. Happy trying SC!