Last updated at 10:03, Thursday, 30 September 2010

I KNOW that these really are the first few days of autumn but I want to cling on to the last rays of summer sunshine and bake a special strawberry tart.

Strawberry delight: with this strawberry tart from Grainne Jakobson

I KNOW that these really are the first few days of autumn but I want to cling on to the last rays of summer sunshine and bake a special strawberry tart.
This is the last opportunity to buy Scottish strawberries before they are replaced by expensive imported berries. Strawberries don’t travel well so local ones have a much better flavour than the, often, larger more ‘watery’ berries.
Scottish strawberries are small and sweet and have the best flavour of all. If after purchase you have time to leave them in the sun for a few hours the flavour is even better.
This is a classic fruit tart with a light and crispy pastry case filled with crème patisserie. As the name suggests this is a French recipe and ‘crème patisserie’ is the traditional baker’s sweet custard filling which is then topped with fresh strawberries. The fruit is then brushed with a clear, jelly like sauce which makes them glisten and look quite irresistible. You can see these tarts in traditional bakeries in e.g. France and Italy using not only strawberries but apples, raspberries, black currants or myrtle berries. They are quite different from our English fruit tarts, not necessarily better but just different!
I can’t say that these tarts are easily put together but if you want an impressive desert and have some time to spare then this is a real treat.
I have used a rich sweet, short crust pastry which is quite ‘tender’ or delicate so you need to handle it gently. This, as well as pre-baking the case – or baking it ‘blind’ i.e. empty makes for a very crisp pastry which contrasts perfectly with the creamy custard and the juicy fruit. Bite into this and you can almost taste the summer sunshine…but don’t despair there are lots more culinary delights around the corner such as warming soups, rich casseroles and traditional hot puddings with custard to name just a few.

Classic French Strawberry Tart
SERVES 6/8
FOR THE PASTRY:

225 g (8 oz) plain white flour, sifted and extra for rolling out
1 pinch of salt
150g (5 oz) butter, cut in to cubes at room temperature
25g (1 oz) golden caster sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 medium egg yolk
2 tablespoon very cold water

FOR THE CRÈME PATISSERIE FILLING:
300ml (½ pt) full cream milk
1 vanilla pod, split and seeds removed
1 large egg and the yolk of 1 egg
50g (2 oz) golden caster sugar
25g (1 oz) plain, white flour sifted
FOR THE TOPPING:
550g (1 ¼ lbs) Scottish strawberries, green stalk removed, halved
1 generous tablespoon redcurrant jelly

You will now have 2 egg whites left over-these freeze well and could be used to make meringues at a later date.

METHOD:
1. Put the flour, salt, butter and sugar into a food processor and whiz briefly until the mixture looks like loose breadcrumbs. Mix the lemon juice, egg yolk and water together and then add to the mixture in the processor. Whiz briefly and the mixture will come together. Don’t over process as this will make the pastry tough. Turn it out on to a floured board and knead gently.
(If you want to make the pastry by hand, rub the butter into the flour as lightly as possible. Stir in the sugar and then mix together the lemon juice, egg yolk and water as before. Sprinkle this over the flour mixture and using a round-ended knife stir it in and start to bring it together against the side of the bowl. Use your hands to gently make smooth dough. As before turn it out onto a floured board and knead gently.) Leave on one side for 15 minutes to rest.
2. Pre-heat the oven to a hot 190C, Gas 5 along with a metal baking sheet. Use a 23cm (9 in) metal flan case with a loose base. Grease well using a pastry brush especially if the edges are fluted.
3 Put a piece of baking parchment on the work top and sprinkle with flour and then turn out the pastry onto this. The paper will help you manoeuvre the pastry as you roll it out. Roll out very gently to just larger than the tin size (to allow for the edges). Gently lift the pastry into the prepared tin using your rolling pin and ease it up the sides. If you then push down all around the edge with your thumb you will make a stronger edge which is less likely to break when you turn release it. Prick the base with a fork and leave for 15 minutes to rest.
4. When ready to bake place it onto the pre-heated tray. (You can fill the case with baking beans but it is not necessary). Bake for about 15 minutes and then press down the surface if it has risen up and then bake for another 15 minutes until the sides are golden brown and the base is firm. Leave to cool completely.
5. To make the crème patisserie filling: Put the milk with the vanilla pod and the seeds in a pan and heat to just below boiling point. Leave to one side to infuse and then remove the vanilla pod (it can be washed and dried to use again).
Choose a large glass bowl that will fit over a pan of water but not actually touch the surface of the water. Whisk the egg, egg yolk and sugar together in the bowl using a wire whisk until they are light and fluffy. Whisk in the flour and then the warm milk. Put the bowl over a pan of water and simmer gently. Leave the whisk in the milk mixture so that you can whisk it up frequently until it is thick and smooth. Take the bowl off the heat and whisk until any lumps are gone. Cover the custard with a circle of wet greaseproof paper (this is to prevent a skin forming) and leave to cool.
6. To assemble the tart: Spoon the cream filling into the case and spread evenly over the base. Arrange the strawberry halves on top of the cream mixture, starting from the outside edge and working into the centre. Sit them up on their bases and, overlapping them, try to cover up as much of the cream mixture that you can.
7. Put the redcurrant jelly in a small pan and heat gently until syrupy, whisking gently. Allow to cool a little and then using a pastry brush generously coat the strawberries with the jelly. If the jelly sets before you have time to do this you can always re-heat it.
8. Serve within 2 hours of assembling. You can make the case a day in advance and keep it in an airtight tin but once filled it needs to be served within a couple of hours before the pastry goes soft. If you want you can freeze the tart case uncooked and then cook from frozen.

TIPS TO AVOID A SOGGY BOTTOM!

WITH this sort of open tart you want to have a really crispy base and it is easy to achieve this if you follow a few simple rules:

1. Use a rich, short crust pastry like the one used here with egg and a high proportion of butter.
2. Use a flexible, thin metal case with a loose bottom and put this on a pre-heated baking sheet. This will heat up very quickly and cook the pastry quickly. It is difficult to achieve this with, for example a ceramic dish which often results in soggy pastry. Once in the tin prick the base all over with a fork.
3. It is not necessary to use baking beans. If the base rises up push it back down again with the back of a spoon.
4. If the sides of the case are browning too quickly then it is easy to roughly tear some strips of foil and cover the edges and then continue cooking.
5. With the loose bottom it is easy to get the case out of the tin once it is cooked and cooled down. Simply put the whole thing on e.g. a soup bowl (that is smaller that the loose bottom) and let the outer circle and fluted edge drop down. Now use a thin bladed knife to slip between the pastry case and the loose base and gently ‘shake it’ on to a serving plate.

CONTACT GRAINNE

Grainne’s new programme of Home Demonstrations 2010/2011 is now available. Demonstration days and evenings include A Taste Of Greece (October 14 & 15), Get Ahead For Christmas, A Taste Of Thailand, Feel Good Food, Irresistible Italian Cooking and more.
Group bookings are available and Gift Vouchers. For details of COOK IN THE CLASSROOM check out the website.
If you would like to be added to the mailing list then contact Grainne Jakobson at Woodend Cookery, Woodend, Egremont CA22 2TA;
Tel (01946) 813017
Email: gmjakobson@sky.coM
Or visit www.woodendcookery.co.uK

First published at 15:43, Wednesday, 29 September 2010
Published by http://www.whitehavennews.co.uk