Strawberry Tart with Pistachio Pastry Cream
French strawberry tart with crisp sweet pastry and pistachio pastry cream. An elegant make-ahead dessert adapted from my book Teatime in Paris (2015).
Equipment
- 24cm/9-inch tart ring (or tin) or 8 individual tartlet tins/rings
Ingredients
Classic Sweet Pastry Tart Shell
Pistachio Pastry Cream
- 400 ml (14fl oz/1 ⅔ cup) whole milk
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla powder or extract
- 5 egg yolks organic
- 60 g (2.5oz/¼ cup) sugar
- 2 tablespoon cornflour/cornstarch
- 1-2 tablespoon pistachio paste See recipe link in NOTES
- 30 g (2 tbsp) single or heavy cream (crème fleurette in France)
Garnish
- 1 punnet fresh strawberries hulled, halved or sliced
Instructions
Sweet Pastry Tart Shell
- Prepare the pastry bases using the pâte sucrée recipe (link below). Blind bake for 25-30 minutes and leave to cool.
Pistachio Pastry Cream Filling
- Heat the milk with the vanilla in a saucepan. Don't boil but when well heated, take off the heat and cover to infuse the flavours.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk the yolks with the sugar until light and creamy. Whisk in the cornflour and pistachio paste until smooth. Gradually pour on the warm milk, constantly whisking. Transfer back to the saucepan, whisking continuously over a medium heat until thickened.
- Take off the heat and leave to cool. Place cling film directly on to the pastry cream, to avoid a film forming on top. Once cool, chill in the fridge for at least an hour.
- Once chilled, remove the film and whisk again with a little cream until perfectly smooth.
Assembly
- Spoon on the pastry cream and level off with a large palette knife - or transfer to a piping bag with a plain tip and pipe in a spiral on to the pastry for a professional look. Top with whole or sliced strawberries.
Notes
Tart Crust: follow my step-by-step recipe for French pâte sucrée (or sweet pastry). Using tart rings, makes one large 24cm/9 inch tart or 2 x 16cm/6 inches + 3 tartlets. However, it's just as easy to buy ready-made sweet tart bases (although homemade is best!)
Pistachio Pastry Cream - if using bought pistachio paste, you may need to use less, as some are powerful. For the best flavour, ensure it's naturally made with pistachios with no additives, colourings, aromas or oils, otherwise make your own homemade pistachio paste.
Milk - I prefer the consistency of regular whole dairy milk but unsweetened almond or coconut milk also work well. If yours is slightly more watery, add a little more cornstarch.
Nutrition
Calories: 118kcalCarbohydrates: 13gProtein: 4gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 129mgSodium: 27mgPotassium: 111mgFiber: 0.2gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 261IUVitamin C: 0.2mgCalcium: 82mgIron: 0.4mg
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