Sweet Strawberry Tartlets Food

STRAWBERRY TARTS

Steps:

• Ask a grown-up to turn the oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Roll the pastry out on a floured surface until it's as thick as £1 coin. Cut round a saucer to make 4 circles. Put each one into the tin.
• Put a square of greaseproof paper and some rice in each. Ask a grown-up to put them in the oven for 25 minutes, then take paper and rice out. Leave to cool.
• Use a whisk to whisk the cream until it starts to get thick, then stir in the lemon curd.
• Pull the green hulls out of the strawberries, and cut each one carefully into slices with a small knife.
• Spoon the cream into 4 pastry cases. Arrange the strawberry slices in a spiral or in rows on top of the lemon cream.
• Mix the jam in a bowl with 1 tbsp hot water, then brush it over the strawberries.

FRESH STRAWBERRY TARTLETS

Steps:

• You will need eight 8cm (3in) round, loose-bottomed fluted tartlet tins. Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/Gas 6. To make the pastry, measure the flour, icing sugar and butter into a food processor and whizz until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Alternatively, place the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl and rub in the butter with your fingertips. Add the egg and whizz again until you have a smooth ball of dough. Wrap the dough in cling film and chill in the fridge for 10 minutes. Sprinkle a work surface with flour and roll out the dough until fairly thin - about the thickness of a £1 coin. Cut out eight discs slightly bigger than the tartlet tins. Line each tin with the pastry, on the base and up the sides (see tip), trim across the top and prick the base with a fork. Line each pastry case with baking paper, fill with a few baking beans and bake blind for about 10 minutes until pale golden and starting to cook . Remove the beans and paper and return to the oven for about 5 minutes to dry out the base and to finish cooking the pastry. Set aside to cool down completely in the tartlet tins. For the filling, measure the mascarpone and cream into a bowl with the icing sugar and vanilla extract and whisk by hand (see tip) until slightly thickened. Spoon some of the filling into each of the cold tartlet cases and level the top. Arrange slices of strawberry on top of each filled tartlet in a pretty spiral. Heat the redcurrant jelly in a small pan and brush over the strawberry slices to glaze. Chill in the fridge for 10 minutes, then remove from the tins to serve. Cook time: 15 minutes, plus chilling and cooling. Prepare Ahead: Can be made completely up to 4 hours ahead. The tartlet cases can be baked up to a day ahead. Freeze: The tartlet cases freeze well. Mary's Everyday Tips: When lining the tartlet tins with the pastry, be sure not to stretch the pastry, or it will shrink back on cooking. Handle gently and ease the excess pastry from around the edges into the sides and lip of the tin.

STRAWBERRY TARTLETS

Steps:

• Put the strawberries on a flat surface and cut them, widthwise, into 1/4-inch thick slices. The slices should be thin enough to bend slightly when you cut them.
• Using a vegetable peeler and, with a light touch, remove the zest from half of the lemon. Try to remove the zest in small pieces and leave the pith (the white part) behind. Juice the lemon and the lime and add them to a bowl along with the zest, sugar and strawberries. Cover the bowl and refrigerate.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Meanwhile, sift the powdered sugar and flour into a medium bowl. Use your hands to push the sugar and flour through the strainer to make it easier. Stir in the melted butter and the orange juice. Stir to blend.
• Invert a baking sheet and put it on a flat surface. Coat it with a thin layer of nonstick spray as an added precaution against sticking. Spoon a generous teaspoon of the batter near the corner of the sheet and use a small offset spatula to spread it thinly into a small, imperfect oval. Take care to leave space between each oval because they will spread when they are baked. You should be able to fit about 12 on the tray.
• Bake them in the oven until light brown, about 5 to 8 minutes. Remove the tray from the oven. Put the tray by the inverted muffin tin. Use the offset spatula to lift the shells, 1 by 1, off the tray. Using your fingers, put a shell over the muffin tin bottom, pressing down to create a tart shell. The sides will overlap or be higher than the muffin hole. Your goal is to make a tart shell to fill with the strawberries. Repeat with the remaining shells. Allow them to cool.
• Strain the liquid from the strawberries and pour it into a small pan. Reduce over medium heat until it becomes syrupy and thick. Pour it back over the strawberries and toss to blend. Return to the refrigerator to chill again. When ready to serve, put a small dollop of sour cream in the bottom of each shell and top with some of the strawberries. Sprinkle with a touch of granulated sugar. Serve immediately.

STRAWBERRY TARTLETS

Steps:

• Place the flour, 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar, and salt in a food processor. Pulse to combine. Add butter, and process until mixture resembles coarse meal.
• In a small bowl, mix together egg yolk and ice water. With machine running, add egg mixture in a slow, steady stream through the feed tube. Process until dough just holds together, about 20 seconds. If dough feels dry, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Divide the dough evenly among six 4-inch tartlet pans; gently press into pans. Prick bottoms with a fork. Refrigerate shells until firm to the touch, at least 30 minutes.
• Line each shell with foil, and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Place tart pans on a rimmed baking sheet; bake until the edges just begin to brown, about 15 minutes. Remove foil and weights. Continue to bake until bottom of crust is golden brown and crisp, about 10 minutes more. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely. Remove shells from pans.
• Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, mix strawberries with remaining 3 tablespoons sugar. Cover with plastic wrap, and let macerate until juicy, about 1 hour.
• When ready to serve, fill each tart shell with about 1/3 cup creme fraiche; divide strawberries evenly among tarts.

SWEET STRAWBERRY TARTLETS

Steps:

• Mix the strawberries and 3 tablespoons of the sugar in a small bowl. Let the strawberries macerate at room temperature for 1 hour. (I put mine in the fridge overnight).
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Arrange 6 individual tartlet pans with removable bottoms on a baking sheet. (You could also use a 9 inch tart pan.) Spray the tartlet pans with nonstick cooking spray. Blend the Maria crackers and the piloncillo in a processor until coarse crumbs form. Add the butter and process until the crumbs come together (this took a few minutes). Press the crumbs into the prepared tartlet pans. Bake until the tartlet shells are golden brown, about 10 minutes. (They may appear a bit soft, but will set upon cooling.) Cool completely.
• Using an electric mixer, whip the cream cheese and the sour cream in a small bowl, until fluffy. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar and whip until well combined. Add the whipping powdered topping and whip until very fluffy. Drain all but 2 tablespoons of the macerating liquid from the strawberries. Fold the strawberries and the reserved 2 tablespoons of liquid into the cream mixture. Spoon the filling over the tartlets, dividing equally. Tarts can be prepared 1 day ahead, covered and refrigerated. (As I mentioned in the introduction, I ate this all week and it was still really good!).
• *Cook's Note: Maria Crackers (Galletas Marias) are a round sweet biscuit with vanilla flavor. They are the Mexican version of the English Marie biscuit and can be used in layered deserts as you would with lady fingers. They can easily be substituted with graham crackers.
• **Cook's Note: Piloncillo is often used in Mexican cuisine to sweeten drinks or deserts. It is unrefined cane sugar, usually found in the shape of small cones and can be substituted with brown sugar.

STRAWBERRY TARTLETS

Steps:

• Brush one side of each wonton wrapper with butter. Place brown sugar in a shallow bowl; press buttered side of wontons into sugar to coat. Press wontons sugared side up into greased muffin cups. , Bake at 325° for 7-9 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Remove to a wire rack to cool. , In a small bowl, combine the cheese, honey and orange juice until smooth. Spoon about 1 tablespoon into each wonton cup. Top with strawberries. Garnish with whipped cream and mint if desired.

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.