Strawberry Tart

Strawberries are the fruit of summer for me – anyone else? They’re pretty easy to find over summer, you can even go and pick them yourself. My mum has always grown them, so we’re really lucky to have loads on demand. That also means that I’ve gotten pretty good at figuring out what to do with them! Patisserie is a bit of an obsession of mine, so I decided to try making a version of a strawberry tart. Traditionally, these are made with crème pâtissière, which I have left out for this recipe, but you can always add it in or just serve it with ice cream, custard or cream.

Ingredients:

• 600g of strawberries (300g for the coulis, 300g for decoration)
• 50g of sugar (if you’re making this vegan, make sure that the sugar is vegan)
• 1tsp lemon juice
• 200g plain flour
• 100g vegan butter (or butter)
• Pinch of salt
• 4-5 tbsp water

Equipment:

• Tart case (I’d recommend going for a larger, shallower tart case)
• Rolling pin
• Baking beans or lentils or rice

Method:

1. Set your oven to 180°C.
2. Next, make your pastry. Combine your flour and salt, and then add your butter and rub together until you get a mixture that resembles bread crumbs.
3. Add your water a tbsp at a time until the mixture comes together as a ball of dough.
4. Cover the dough and chill while you make the coulis, or about 15-30 minutes.
5. Wash 300g of your strawberries and remove the stalks. Add to a blender (or use a hand blender) with the sugar and lemon juice until you have a fine mixture.
6. Pour the coulis into a small saucepan over a low heat and cook for about 15 minutes until it has thickened. Set aside to cool.
7. Roll out your pastry large enough to cover your dish. Leave a little bit of an overhang on the edge to allow your pastry to shrink.
8. Prick the base with a fork, then line the pastry case with baking parchment. Fill will baking beans (dry lentils also work).
9. Bake for 15 minutes, then remove the parchment and bake for another 5-10 or until golden brown. Set aside to cool.
10. Spread about 90% of the coulis over the pastry case and arrange the strawberries as you like. Use a pastry brush to brush the strawberries with the rest of the coulis.
11. Enjoy!

Once you’ve made the tart, store it in the fridge. It should last for a couple of days if you chill it. I serve it with ice cream or just on its own. Enjoy!