Strawberry Tart with Ackee Pastry Cream

Celebrate the beauty in simplicity with this easy strawberry tart.

Sweet tart dough is filled with ackee pastry cream and topped with loads of fresh strawberries brushed with a simple glaze, it makes a gorgeous summer dessert.

FRESH STRAWBERRY TART WITH ACKEE PASTRY CREAM

The strawberry season here in Windsor is lightning fast but the strawberries are super sweet and truly the perfect ingredient. Of course they could simply be enjoyed on their own or with a dollop of cream. But serving them in a crisp buttery tart shell with the ackee pastry cream provides a unique contrast.

TART CRUST

I know that for many the thought of making a tart shell from scratch is intimidating.

Rest assured that this recipe is easy to do! It doesn’t even require you to roll the dough out! Simply mix together the ingredients to form the dough then press it into the tart pan, done! Best of all you can make the tart shell the day ahead, wrap it well and store it at room temperature, tada! Didn’t I say it was easy 😊

ACKEE PASTRY CREAM

Pastry cream can be equally equally intimidating for some. For this version, there is no tempering involved so it comes together in a snap.

Side note: Tempering is the process usually used when making a egg thickened sauce. It involves first heating the milk/cream, then whisking that hot liquid into the eggs while constantly stirring the eggs so they don’t scramble which can be a bit nerve wracking.

The instructions for making a lighter version for the tart or to make an awesome eclair or cream puff filling are included in the variations in the recipe.

FINISHING THE TART

The strawberries are simply cut, arranged on top of the set cream and brushed with thinned apricot preserves. If you prefer you could simply dust the strawberries with powdered sugar but I do love a pretty sheen on fresh fruit tarts. I used about 2 pounds of strawberries to cover the top of this tart. If you slice the strawberries thinner and arrange them differently you won’t need that much.

What do you think of this twist on a classic? As always feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section below and if you make this or any of the recipes on the site be sure to #amazingackee so I can see your posts across social media.

Until next time, thanks for stopping by!

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Sweet Tart Dough

This sweet tart dough is very easy to make, no rolling required, just press into your tart mold and you're good to go. It also makes a great base for bars and cheesecakes.

Course Dessert

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Author Chantal

Ingredients

• 200 g Unsalted Butter soft (14 tbsps)
• 60 g Confectioner's sugar (4 tbsps)
• 255 g All-purpose flour (2 cups)
• Pinch salt

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a standmixer fitted with the paddle attachment.
2. Mix on low speed till the dough comes together in a ball and away from the bowl.
3. Press into tart shell and chill in freezer till ready to bake (chill at least 15 minutes)
4. Preheat oven to 400F. I like to line my tart dough with foil and weigh it down with dried beans or rice much like blind baking a pie. You could simply prick the base of the tart lightly with a fork which should prevent it from puffing up. If it does, gently prick the bubble to let the steam out.
5. Bake tart shell for 15 minutes or until lightly coloured. If you choose to line the tart with foil you will have to remove the foil and bake more until the base is cooked, if the edges are becoming too dark, make a cover for them out of foil.
6. Let cool completely. It's now ready for use.

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Ackee Pastry Cream

Ackees and cream are a delightful combination, they give the pastry cream an exotic slightly nutty flavour. This pastry cream is easy to make and requires no tempering of the milk into eggs.

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 15 minutes

Author Chantal

Ingredients

• 2 Eggs large
• 1/2 Cup Granulated sugar
• 4 tbsps Cornstarch
• 1 1/2 Cups Milk
• 3/4 Cup Parboiled Ackees
• 2 tbsps Unsalted Butter cut into pieces
• 1 tsp Vanilla

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients except for butter and vanilla in a saucepan. Blend with an immersion blender until completely smooth.
2. Cook over low to medim heat stirring occassionally, the mixture will start to thicken. The idea is to heat the mix up slowly and evenly.
3. Once the mixture becomes thick, you will need to stir more frequently, I like to mix with a whisk, keeping a spatula handy the get into the corners once it's thickened up.
4. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently, let cook for 2 to 3 minutes, taste to ensure that the cornstarch has cooked out completely.
5. Pass through a sieve into a bowl (if you stirred well you shouldn't have any lumps but this is to catch any bits of the ackee that might have missed the blade of the immersion blender)
6. Whisk in butter piece by piece until completely melted, then add vanilla.
7. Pour into prepared tart shell and press a piece of plastic directly on top the pastry cream. Chill till set (about 4 hours). Once the cream is set you can finish your tart as desired.

Recipe Notes

I have an 11-inch tart shell which is fairly large, if you make the full recipe and have a smaller pan you will have dough left over, the dough can be frozen for up to a month. Alternately you could roll out the excess, cut and bake them and voila! you have cookies.

For lighter pastry cream (in weight not calories 😉): instead of filling the tart shell with the warm pastry cream, let it cool under refrigeration completely. Once cool, whip about half a cup of lightly sweetened whipping cream to medium peaks. Add into chilled pastry cream in three additions mixing well to combine.

For the apricot glaze: combine a few tablespoons of apricot preserves and water and bring to a boil, alternately you could heat it in the microwave. Mix till smooth, cool briefly before using.

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