BEST! Strawberry Tart

Tarts are my favorite kind of dessert and I would go for any filling or toppings, but especially I love strawberry tarts. This restaurant-style strawberry tart looks fancy and complicated but you can make it easily at home.

If you have some fresh strawberries and want to impress your guests, then this strawberry tart is for you. Bake your tart with almond cream, fill it with pastry cream, and/or whipped cream, and then have some fun creating a pretty strawberry design on top!

How do you make this strawberry tart?

You start by making the pastry dough and then blind-baking the pastry crust, then when it cools, fill it with almond cream and bake again. After cooling, fill it with pastry cream and whipped cream (if using). Finally, top the tart with fresh-cut strawberries as you like, and finish by brushing on a honey or apricot glaze.

Making this strawberry tart from scratch is actually really easy! However, your tart needs plenty of time to chill and set. To make it easy, I usually do all the preparation (making the crust and filling) in advance. Then, you can easily assemble the tart a few hours before you need to serve it!

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The components of the strawberry tart

This beautiful strawberry tart consists of 6 components. I used both pastry cream and whipped cream for a rich version but you can use only pastry cream.

1. Crust
2. Almond cream filling
3. Custard cream or Pastry cream
4. Whipped cream
5. Fresh strawberries
6. Honey syrup glaze

Steps to make this strawberry tart

1. Make the shortcrust pastry
2. Partially bake (par-bake) the crust
3. Make the almond cream
4. Fill the par-baked crust with almond cream and bake
5. Make the pastry cream
6. Prepare the whipped cream (Homemade or store-bought), if using
7. Fill the tart with the pastry cream and whipped cream, if using
8. Top with strawberries as you like and brush with honey glaze

1. MakE the Tart Crust

The first thing we’ll start with is the tart crust. In this recipe, I used a sweet shortcrust pastry to make the tart crust. With a buttery, crumbly, cookie-like texture, this is one of my favorite tart crusts. You will need just six ingredients—flour, butter, sugar, egg yolk, salt, and cold water.

Ingredients for Tart Crust

• Flour: Sifted All-purpose flour or plain flour.
• Sugar: I used fine granulated sugar. Or use powdered sugar.
• Butter: Cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes. Or use good-quality margarine.
• Egg Yolk and Cold water: First, add the egg yolk and then adjust the texture of the dough by adding cold water if the dough is still dry.
• Salt: A pinch of fine salt to boost the flavors.

How to make the shortcrust pastry

Using your food processor when making shortcrust pastry is dead easy and super quick. Because the food processor does all of the hard work of cutting in the butter and making the dough without allowing it to soften from overworking. So, it’s the best method to make the pastry dough for making a flaky crust without any hassle. However, you can also make the pastry dough easily by hand too.

Make the pastry dough in a Food Processor

I made this pastry dough using a food processor. Please follow the instruction in the step-by-step picture recipe (or in the printable recipe).

Make the pastry dough by Hand

If you want to make the pastry dough by hand, here are the steps to do it.

1. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, and salt.
2. Add the cold butter cut into small pieces to the flour mixture.
3. Rub the butter into the flour with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Do it quickly to prevent the dough from becoming warm.
4. Add the egg yolk and 1 tablespoon of water to the flour mixture. Using two forks, mix until the dough pulls together. Add more cold water a teaspoon at a time if the mixture is too dry.
5. Flatten the dough into a round disk, wrap it in plastic wrap, and chill for a minimum of 1 hour up to overnight.

How to Blind-Bake the Crust?

Blind baking is simply prebaking your crust before adding the filling. You may need to bake it partially for some tart recipes, like this strawberry tart, or bake it completely for others.

The partially baked crust requires a shorter baking time than the fully baked crust because the crust will be fully baked after adding the filling to the partially baked crust. Partially baking prevents the tart crust from becoming soggy making it crisp.

Because the pastry dough puffs up and shrinks away from the edge of the tart pan during baking, pie weights are used to weigh down the bottom of the tart. You can use dried beans or uncooked rice instead of pie weights.

2. Make the Almond Cream Filling

I made the almond cream using a food processor, however, you can also make it by hand. You can make the almond cream in advance and store it in the fridge in a bowl covered with plastic wrap. Make sure to let it come back to room temperature before use as it becomes hard when chilled.

Ingredients for almond filling

• Butter: Unsalted and soft at room temperature.
• Sugar: Powdered sugar or fine-granulated sugar
• Egg: you will need both the egg yolk and egg white. Use large-sized eggs, at room temperature.
• Almond Meal: you can use both blanched or un-blanched almond meals made from coarse-ground almonds.
• Flavoring: Add some vanilla or almond extract for the flavor.

3. Make the Pastry Cream

Whether you call it custard cream or pastry cream, this sweet filling is the perfect filling for this strawberry tart. There seem to be many different ways to make custard cream. In this recipe, I will show you a short-cut method using a microwave. Although the microwave method is rather simple and easy, the technique can be a bit tricky, so make sure to follow the instructions.

Ingredients for pastry cream

• Milk: Use whole milk for optimal results.
• Sugar: Use fine granulated sugar or powdered sugar.
• Egg Yolk: Pastry cream typically calls for egg yolks.
• Starch: Starch thickens pastry cream. I used corn starch, you can also use cake flour, cornstarch, or a mix of the two.
• Vanilla: Add vanilla extract for a nice flavor.
• Butter: Unsalted butter for flavor and texture.

4. Make the Whipped Cream

Using whipped cream is optional. I used both pastry cream and whipped cream to make a rich taste of tart. You can use either homemade or store-bought whipped cream.

5. Prepare the Fresh Strawberries

I used sweet Japanese strawberries as they are perfect and readily available. Japanese strawberries are known for their large size, soft texture, and sweetness compared to the average strawberries. If you cannot find them, try to use the sweetest strawberries you can find. Make sure to wash and thoroughly dry the strawberries before using them.

6. Make the Honey Syrup Glaze

You can skip the glaze but it adds an extra layer of flavor and the glossy finish looks very professional. I used a honey syrup glaze but you can also use apricot or apple jam for a clear glaze. 

Heat the honey, or jam in a small saucepan along with about a tablespoon of water until it liquefies. You can also dissolve honey or jam in hot water. Pour the glaze through a wire mesh strainer and into a small bowl to remove any bits of fruit if you use jam.

Tart Pan for making Strawberry Tart

I used an 18 cm aluminum tart pan with a removable bottom as it helps you remove the tart from the pan and serve it without breaking it. I haven’t used non-stick tart pans, however, it seems the tart crust shrinkage is less when using an aluminum tart pan compared to the non-stick tart pan.

Tips for Making a Perfect Strawberry Tart

Preparation

• Gather together all your equipment and ingredients before you begin. 
• Keep the ingredients, equipment, and hands as cool as possible.

The crust

• Over-kneading the dough will develop too much gluten.
• Work quickly as it makes a lighter pastry.
• The dough must be completely chilled before you use it. Let it rest for one-hour minimum, but the longer you can let it rest, the better it is.
• The chilling time after rolling and lining the pan is really important. It allows the gluten in the dough to relax, giving you less shrinkage and fewer cracks in the finished tart shell.
• Always put the tart into a preheated oven. If the oven is cool, the pastry will melt rather than bake.
• You can make one large tart and if there is any leftover dough, use it for making tartlets or cookies.

Storing Suggestions

Shortcrust pastry dough; You can make this pastry dough ahead of time and that’s the easiest way of making tarts. Store it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or freeze it for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then let sit at room temperature until easily rollable.

Par-Baked Crust; Alternatively, you can partially bake the tart shells as directed. The par-baked crust can be stored in the refrigerator for 2 days or frozen for 2 months. When ready to assemble the tart, let it thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then let sit at room temperature before filling and decorating. 

Strawberry Tart: This strawberry tart is best eaten fresh the same day and requires constant refrigeration. It can be stored in a container in the fridge for 2 days. But I don’t recommend freezing it because the fresh fruit will release liquid into the filling after freezing and thawing.

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Strawberry Tart (Step-by-Step) Recipe

Prep: 50 mins
Cook: 1 hour 10 mins
Total: 2 hours
Servings: 6 to 8 slices

Ingredients

For the Crust (18 cm to 20 cm)

• 75 g cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 75 g granulated sugar
• 150 g all-purpose flour, sifted
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 tablespoon cold water, or as needed

For the Almond Filling

• 10 g cake flour
• 50 g almond powder
• 1 large egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 50 g sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Custard Cream

• 3 egg yolks
• 50 g sugar
• 20 g cornflour
• 250 ml whole milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 25g salted or unsalted butter

For topping

20 to 25 small to medium-sized fresh strawberries

Glaze
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon hot water

Instructions

Preparation

Lightly butter the tart pan. I used an 18 cm aluminum tart pan with a removable bottom as it helps you remove the tart from the pan and serve it without breaking it.

To Make Crust in Food Processor

• Gather all the ingredients. If possible, keep all ingredients chilled in the refrigerator until ready to start.
• Cut the butter into small cubes.
• Crack the egg yolk into a small bowl.
• Sift the flour

Place the ingredients in the order of butter, sugar, flour, and egg yolk into the bowl of the food processor.

Using only the pulse setting, pulse until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. If it seems too dry, add one tablespoon of cold water and pulse a few times. If it holds together, it doesn’t need more water.

Avoid overmixing. Too much handling can result in hard pastry. So stop mixing when you obtain a sandy texture. It gets the shape when pressed together. 

Remove it from the bowl to a sheet of plastic wrap. Bring it together in a ball using your hands. Place a second sheet of plastic wrap over it and then slightly press on it to create a round disk. Chill the dough for a minimum of 1 hour or up to overnight before rolling. It can be kept in the refrigerator for up to three days.

Once the dough has chilled and rested, take it out from the fridge and place the disc onto a work surface. Let it sit on the counter for a few minutes to soften slightly for easy rolling. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough about 2 to 3 cm bigger than the size of your baking pan.

Your dough should be large enough to push up the sides of your pan. If the dough is too soft, put it back into the refrigerator.

Peel off the top sheet of plastic wrap, then carefully lift the dough into your tart pan and place it back on. That is the easiest way to transfer the dough from the counter to the pan.

Gently but firmly and evenly press the dough onto the bottom and sides of the pan. Remove the second sheet of plastic wrap. Gently press the edges down to fit in the pan.

Trim off the excess dough either by running your rolling pin over the edges, or cutting it off with a sharp knife. If any cracks are visible, seal them by pressing a bit of the excess dough into them with your fingers to fill it in.

Gently poke the crust with a fork. This step is called docking and it allows the steam to escape so that the pie crust doesn’t puff up in the oven.

Place back in the fridge for at least 1 hour, or up to 24 hours. Cover it with plastic wrap so that the pastry doesn’t dry out. Chilling the dough before baking prevents it from shrinking.

Preheat the oven to 190ºC and place the rack in the center.

When the oven is ready, cover the dough with a sheet of parchment paper large enough to cover all of the dough. And then fill the crust with pie weights, dried beans, or uncooked rice. Make sure they are evenly distributed over the entire surface, not just scattering.

Note: In this recipe, I covered only the bottom with parchment paper and then I found that covering the edges prevents them from browning too much.

Bake the tart shell for 10 minutes, then remove the parchment paper and weight and continue baking for another 5 to 10 minutes until the bottom of the crust feels dry to the touch.

Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool completely before filling it with the almond cream. The crust can be frozen for up to two weeks if wrapped well.

Make the Almond Cream Filling

Gather the ingredients.

In a food processor, cream the soft butter and sugar until soft and creamy. You can also do it in a mixing bowl with a hand mixer.

Add the egg plus egg yolk and slowly mix it in. If it seems to be curdling, don’t worry, the mixture will come back together later.

Add the Almond Meal. Slowly mix until a thick paste comes together.

You can directly spread the filling around the bottom of the par-baked tart crust with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Or you can also transfer the almond cream into a pastry bag to get an even thickness easily all around the tart.

Bake for another 35 to 40 minutes at 170C. The almond filling should have puffed up and looked golden. Allow it to cool completely before filling your tart!

Make the Custard Cream (Pastry Cream)

Gather the ingredients.

  In a large pyrex bowl, whisk egg yolks, sugar, and vanilla extract together until smooth.

Sift the cornflour into the egg mixture.

Whisk vigorously until smooth. 

Continually whisking, pour the milk, mixing until smooth. 

Microwave at 500 w for 2 minutes and then in 30-second increments, removing it from the microwave and whisking after each burst, until the pastry cream is thick. 

In my microwave, this took 4 minutes in total.

Remove from the microwave, and whisk well to smooth out any lumps.

Add the butter pieces and whisk them into the pastry cream until smooth.

Press plastic wrap to the surface of the cream to stop it from forming a skin and store in the fridge until cool.

Assemble the Tart

After cooling, pipe the shell with pastry cream. Or you could just spoon it in and gently smooth it down.

And then pipe with whipped cream, if using

I used 25 small-size strawberries for this cake. Wash the strawberries and then pat them dry with paper towels, making sure to absorb as much water as possible. Let them dry completely on fresh paper towels before use.

Remove the hull and cut the strawberries into halves.

Next, arrange your strawberries on top of the cream, as you like.

Dissolve the honey with hot water in a small bowl to make honey syrup glaze. Brush it over the strawberries while still warm.

Refrigerate the tart for at least an hour before serving.

Serve & Enjoy!

Strawberry Tart Recipe

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