French strawberry tart

French strawberry tart, also known as Tarte aux Fraises, is a true summer classic. It combines a traditional French pâte sablée pastry case – buttery, delicate and slightly sandy in texture – with juicy ripe strawberries arranged over a generous layer of silky crème pâtissière, a rich homemade vanilla custard made with plenty of egg yolks. Finished with a glossy glaze that makes the strawberries shine, this elegant tart requires surprisingly little effort but delivers spectacular results. Make this beautiful tart at home and bring the charm of a French patisserie straight to your kitchen.

Ingredients for the pâte sablée:

• 310 g plain flour
• 175 g cold butter, diced
• 80 g icing sugar
• 2 egg yolks, from large eggs
• a pinch of salt

Sift the flour into a bowl. Add the butter and rub it in quickly with your fingertips, or cut it into the flour with a pastry cutter, until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the icing sugar, salt and egg yolks, then quickly bring the dough together. Alternatively, prepare the pastry in a food processor. Shape into a disc, wrap in cling film and chill in the refrigerator for 30–60 minutes.

Butter a 20 x 30 cm tart tin and dust lightly with flour, shaking out any excess. Roll out the chilled pastry to approximately 3 mm thickness and line the prepared tart tin. Chill again for 30 minutes. Lightly dust the pastry with flour, line with baking paper and fill with baking beans, dried beans or rice.

Preheat the oven to 220°C. Reduce the temperature to 190°C and bake the pastry case for 15 minutes. Remove the tart from the oven, carefully remove the baking paper and weights, then reduce the oven temperature to 180°C. Return the tart shell to the oven and bake for a further 10 minutes, or until golden brown and fully baked. Remove and leave to cool completely.

Ingredients for the crème pâtissière:

• 500 ml milk
• seeds from 1 vanilla pod
• 5 large egg yolks
• 85 g caster sugar
• 35 g plain flour
• 35 g potato starch (or cornflour)

In a medium saucepan, bring the milk and vanilla seeds to the boil. As soon as it reaches boiling point, remove from the heat.

Place the egg yolks and sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer and whisk until pale and thick. Add the flour and potato starch and continue mixing until smooth. Gradually whisk in 100 ml of the hot milk until fully incorporated. Pour the tempered egg mixture into the remaining hot milk and whisk thoroughly. Return the saucepan to medium heat and cook, stirring constantly, until the custard comes to the boil. Once boiling, continue cooking for approximately 1 minute, stirring continuously, until thickened. Remove from the heat.

Cover the surface of the custard directly with cling film to prevent a skin from forming. Leave to cool completely, then refrigerate. Do not stir while it is cooling. The finished crème pâtissière can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Spread the chilled crème pâtissière evenly over the cooled tart shell.

To finish:

• 800 g strawberries
• ½ jar smooth apricot or strawberry jam

Hull the strawberries and cut them in half. Arrange them neatly over the crème pâtissière. Warm the jam until smooth and brush it generously over the strawberries using a pastry brush.

Store the French strawberry tart in the refrigerator. For the best texture, remove it from the fridge 30–60 minutes before serving, as the pastry will firm up when chilled.

Enjoy!