With fruit in abundance right now do you need anymore of an excuse to make a delicious fresh fruit tart? A favorite recipe of mine, this tart is much simpler than it looks to make and even easier to eat.
Shortbread Crust;
1 cup ap flour
1/3 cup confectioners sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup cold unsatler butter, cut into pieces
Vanilla Custard Filling;
2 cups milk
2 tbsp cornstarch
1/3 cup sugar
2 eggs lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 vanilla bean scrapped (optional)
Seasonal Fruit;
1/2 cup of sliced straberries
1/2 cup of blueberries
1/4 cup of raspberries
2 kiwis peeled and sliced
1/4 cup of apricot glaze to be slightly warmed first before it is used
In your food processor, place the flour, sugar, and salt and process to combine. Add the butter and pulse until the pastry starts to come together and form clumps. Place the pastry in the prepared tart pan and, using your fingertips, evenly press the pastry onto the bottom and up the sides of the pan. (Can use the back of a spoon to smooth the surface of the pastry.) Pierce the bottom of the crust with the tines of a fork. (This will prevent the pastry crust from puffing up while it bakes.) Cover and place the pastry crust in the freezer for 15 minutes to chill. (This will help prevent the crust from shrinking while it bakes.)
Preheat oven to 425º. Take a piece of parchment and cover the top of the prepared tart shell. Fill with pie weights or uncooked dry beans. Place the prepared tart shell into the oven for 13-15 minutes until crust is golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool to room temperature on wire rack.
Crack eggs into a bowl and set aside, have them close by.
Using a whisk, combine milk, sugar and cornstarch in a medium saucepan over medium heat on a stove burner. Allow the milk to scald, (where milk is heated through to the point where tiny bubbles form around the edges of saucepan). Whisk occasionally to prevent the cornstarch from clumping or sticking to the pan.
Remove milk mixture from heat.
Mix about 2 tablespoons of scalded milk mixture into eggs using whisk. You are tempering the eggs so they don't overcook when you add them all into the milk mixture. Add the eggs into milk mixture in a slow stream, whisking constantly.
Immediately return the saucepan to medium heat and whisk until custard thickens, about two to three minutes. Do not allow the mixture to come to a boil.
Remove pan from heat and stir in vanilla extract and vanilla bean that has been scrapped. Pour mixture into a bowl and press and cover with a piece of plastic wrap. Allow to cool for several minutes before placing into the fridge to be cooled completely.
Assemble the tart by spreading the custard filing into the cooled prepared tart shell. Smooth to one even layer. Begin to then arrange the fruit to your desire, I followed an image I saw online and added my own special interpretation where I saw fit. Feel free to use more or less of your favorite fruits. Brush the warmed fruit preserve onto the fruit. Refrigerate until ready to serve. This keeps for up to two days before the fruit becomes too soft and starts to bruise.
