Fresh Fruit Tart

I was trying to make something unique for a baby shower and wasn't sure what. A coworker of mine was researching recipes for fruit tarts and gave me the perfect idea. It was a great choice because it was not only very pretty, colorful but also very light, healthy and fits the occasion well. Everyone seemed to have enjoyed it. I was able to make one complete crust on a tart pan and 3/4 of a crust on a pie dish using the below recipe. The one in the pie dish I filled with left over pudding and the other one I filled with pastry cream from the recipe below. I made the crust two days prior and prepared the cream the morning of. The cream was very easy to make. The fruits I had to wash one day in advance and dry really well before using. I only wish that I was a better decorator so that it would look more professional. I'll try a different technique with the fruits next time and see how that goes. I didn't use any glaze because It was going to be served within hours. This recipe is a keeper. I can see using this with all kinds of fresh seasonal fruits throughout the year.

Fruit Tart Recipe

Recipe for one 9-in tart or four individual 4-in tarts

Pâte Brisée (crust)

250 g all purpose flour (2 cups)
125 g cold unsalted butter (1/2 cup)
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 to 3 tablespoons cold water


To make the dough, use either a food processor, a mixer or a bowl and the best tools : your hands! Combine all the ingredients except the water. Work the mixture until crumbly. Add the water one tablespoon at a time until you form a dough. It is very important not to over work the dough otherwise your crust will shrink in the oven and you will not have that light, flaky kind of crust. wrap the dough and chill for at least 30 mn. This step can be prepared up to 2 days in advance. Just wrap the dough well and keep it in the fridge.

Pastry Cream

1 cup whole milk (don't use low fat versions please)
2 egg yolks
40 g (2.5 TBSP) granulated sugar
30 g (2 TBSP) corn starch
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

Heat the milk in a pan over medium heat. Meanwhile, combine the egg yolks, sugar and corn starch and mix until well combined. Gradually, add the hot milk. Put the mixture back in the pan and cook, stirring continuously (not the time to answer the phone, yeah yeah I know baking requires a lot of sacrifice) until it thickens. Off heat, stir in the vanilla. Transfer to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap and let cool at room temperature then into the fridge for up to 2 days.
When ready to use, whip the cream and fold it into the COLD pastry cream.


Preparing the tart shells

Preheat the oven to 375. Remove the dough from the fridge and if it got too hard, let it sit for about 15 minutes. Flour your work surface and roll out the dough to about 1/4 in thickness. I like my crust pretty thin.
Arrange the dough on the mold (s) of your choice. Pick the entire surface of the dough with a fork and layer a piece of foil on top of it. Fill the foiled pan with beans. This will help the crust keep its nice shape.
Cook the crust for 10 minutes then remove the foil (and the beans!) and continue baking until lightly brown. Cool completely before filling.