Mary Berry Strawberry Tart Food

STRAWBERRY TART

Steps:

• To make the pastry, put the butter and icing sugar in a food processor and blitz until combined. Add the egg yolks and blitz until smooth. Add the flour and salt and blitz until a dough starts to form. Shape the dough into a ball, flatten to a disc and then wrap and chill in the fridge for around 30 minutes.
• To make the crème pâtissière, heat the milk, vanilla paste and salt over a low heat until gently steaming. Meanwhile, put the egg yolks, sugar and cornflour in a bowl and stir together until smooth and thick. Slowly pour in the hot milk in a thin stream, stirring with a whisk. Pour the mixture back into the pan and cook over a low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter until it melts and combines with the thickened mixture. Pour the mixture into a bowl and cover the surface with cling film to prevent a skin from forming. Leave to cool for 10 minutes, then chill until needed.
• Tip the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and dust a bit more flour on top. Roll out to form a circle about 30cm/12in in diameter. Line a 23cm/9in loose-bottomed fluted tart tin with the pastry, gently pressing it down into the tin and up the sides. Leave the pastry overhanging the edge of the tin and trim away any excess pastry. Prick the base all over with a fork, then chill for 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.
• Remove the tart tin from the fridge and place on a baking tray. Take a large square of baking paper and crumple it up into a ball, then uncrumple it and use it to line the pastry. Fill with baking beans to support the edges as the pastry bakes. Blind bake for 10-12 minutes, until the edges are just turning golden. Lift out the baking paper and beans and bake for a further 7-10 minutes, until golden and crisp all over. Leave to cool.
• Sprinkle the strawberries with the caster sugar and set aside for 5 minutes until they begin to release their juices. Remove the crème pâtissière from the fridge and stir briefly until smooth. Pour it into the cooled pastry case and spread evenly. Decorate with the strawberries in concentric circles. Cut into slices and serve.

STRAWBERRY TARTS

Steps:

• Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a small bowl and place in the freezer for 30 minutes. Put the flour mixture in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the butter and shortening and pulse about 10 times, or until the butter is in the size of peas. Add the ice water and process until the dough comes together. Dump on a well-floured board and form into a disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Roll out the dough and fit into 4 (4 1/2-inch) tart pans with removable sides. Don't stretch the dough when placing it in the pans or it will shrink during baking. Cut off the excess by rolling the pin across the top of each pan. Line the tart shells with a piece of buttered aluminum foil, butter side down, and fill them with dried beans or rice. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove the beans and foil, prick the bottom of the shells all over with a fork, and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes until lightly browned. Set aside to cool.
• Before serving, fill the tart shells with the pastry cream. Arrange the berries decoratively on top of the cream. Melt the apricot jelly with 1 teaspoon of water and brush the top of the tarts. Sprinkle with pistachios, if using, and serve.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the egg yolks and sugar on medium-high speed for 4 minutes, or until very thick. Reduce to low speed, and add the cornstarch.
• With the mixer still on low, slowly pour the hot milk into the egg mixture. Pour the mixture into a medium saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the mixture thickens, 5 to 7 minutes. Don't be alarmed when the custard comes to a boil and appears to curdle; switch to a whisk and beat vigorously. Cook, whisking constantly, for another 2 minutes; the custard will come together and become very thick, like pudding. Stir in the vanilla, Cognac, butter, and heavy cream. Pour the custard through a sieve into a bowl. Place plastic wrap directly on the custard and refrigerate until cold.

MARY BERRY'S TREACLE TART

Steps:

• First make the shortcrust pastry: measure the flour into a large bowl and rub in the butter with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs (alternatively, this can be done in a food processor). Add about three tablespoons of cold water and mix to a firm dough, wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for about 20 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6 and put a heavy baking tray in the oven to heat up. Grease a deep 18cm/7in loose-bottomed fluted flan tin with butter.
• Remove about 150g/5½oz of pastry from the main ball and set aside for the lattice top.
• Roll the rest of the pastry out thinly on a lightly floured work surface and line the prepared flan tin with the pastry.
• Prick the base with a fork, to stop the base rising up during baking.
• Place the reserved pastry for the lattice top on cling film and roll out thinly. Egg wash the pastry and set aside to chill in the fridge (the cling film makes it easier to move about). Do not cut into strips at this stage. Do not egg wash the strips once they are on the tart as it will drip into the treacle mixture.
• To make the filling, heat the syrup gently in a large pan but do not boil.
• Once melted, add the breadcrumbs, lemon juice and zest to the syrup. (You can add less lemon if you would prefer less citrus taste.) If the mixture looks runny, add a few more breadcrumbs. Pour the syrup mixture into the lined tin and level the surface.
• Remove the reserved pastry from the fridge and cut into long strips, 1cm/½in wide. Make sure they are all longer than the edges of the tart tin.
• Egg wash the edge of the pastry in the tin, and start to make the woven laying lattice pattern over the mixture, leave the strips hanging over the edge of the tin.
• Once the lattice is in place, use the tin edge to cut off the strips by pressing down with your hands, creating a neat finish.
• Bake on the pre-heated baking tray in the hot oven for about 10 minutes until the pastry has started to colour, and then reduce the oven temperature to 180C/350F/Gas 4. If at this stage the lattice seems to be getting too dark brown, cover the tart with tin foil.
• Bake for a further 25-30 minutes until the pastry is golden-brown and the filling set. Remove the tart from the oven and leave to firm up in the tin. Serve warm or cold.

STRAWBERRY TART

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.

TWO-BERRY TART

Steps:

• Pate Sucree Extra:Pulse flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor to combine. Add butter and pulse just until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds. In a liquid-measuring cup, whisk together ice water and egg yolks. With machine running, add egg-yolk mixture in a slow, steady stream just until dough holds together without being wet or sticky, about 30 seconds. To test, squeeze a small amount together; if it is crumbly, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time. Turn dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap and divide in half. Shape each half into a disk, wrap tightly, and refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out one disk of dough to a 13-inch round (reserve remaining disk for another use). Fit into a 9-inch round fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. Freeze until firm, about 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line tart shell with parchment, pressing it into corners and edges, then fill with dried beans, rice, or pie weights. Place on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until sides are golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove parchment and beans. Continue baking until crust is light golden-brown, 10 to 15 minutes more. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely.
• Pastry Cream:In a small bowl, sprinkle gelatin over 1 tablespoon water. Let stand until softened. In a medium saucepan, whisk together sugar, flour, cornstarch, and salt. Whisk in milk, eggs, orange zest, vanilla seeds and bean, and butter. Cook over high heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes to a boil. Let boil 1 minute, then remove from heat. Discard vanilla bean. Whisk in gelatin mixture.
• Strain pastry cream into a large heatproof bowl and cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto surface to prevent skin from forming. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 2 hours and up to 2 days.
• Just before using, mix pastry cream with a rubber spatula until smooth. Fold in whipped cream until incorporated. Spread evenly into tart shell; refrigerate until set, about 2 hours.
• Topping:To serve, pile fruit over filling to cover completely.