Mixed Berry Tart

Last Sunday was our first family dinner that we had had in a while. Sad, I know. Everyone’s just been so extremely busy lately, and my dad has hardly been home on weekends because he’s been going out with friends and eating out (less cleanup for me! LOL). But finally I put my foot down and insisted that he stay home on Sunday night since I was going to be trying out 2 new recipes on him, my sister and her family.

The first was this yummy crockpot recipe which turned out super yummy!

The second was a Mixed Berry Tart that I had found at the Williams-Sonoma website.

This tart was amazing. I swear it.

The crust was like shortbread. My sister actually suggested that I could make the crust dough and just put it in pan, bake it, and slice it up to eat on its own.

*Lightbulb!!*

I will definitely be trying this at some point :)

———————

After enjoying our fantastic dinner (if I do say so myself, which of course, I do), we settled in to watch Big Brother 13. Oh em gee, reality tv? I know. It’s one of my secret (or not so secret?) pleasures.

NOTE: If you happen to be a BB fan like I am, check out this blog dedicated to BB13 for all the latest updates (before the shows). I promise it will give you your much-needed BB fix! 0:-)

While BB was going on and we were watching CBS make it look like Rachel/Brendon and Jordan/Jeff were going to turn on each other, I finished putting the tart together and made some homemade whipped cream.

Yes brother-in-law of mine. Homemade. Whipped. Cream.

Just for you.

Now you can’t complain anymore. HAH.

 

My 9-year old nephew was completely amazed during the whole process. He asked me how I could make whipped cream without a whip!

Darn. I forgot to buy one of those first. Indiana, where are you? I need your WHIP! NOW!

Well that didn’t work. Oh well, guess the mixer will have to do.

It looks like the whipped cream turned out, even without the whip! My nephew was hopping up and down at this point over how amazing it was that I turned heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla into whipped cream. What can I say? I’m pretty darn magical!

 

He also made sure to tell me how much money I could make if I turned our house into a restaurant. He said he’d be there every night and be that “crazy bouncy jumping guy” at the restaurant.

I was honestly worried that if I did open my own restaurant, that I wouldn’t know where to find that “crazy bouncy jumping guy” to complete it. But thankfully, I won’t have to worry about that. Thanks dude! You’re the most thoughtful little nephew evar. :P

 

Honestly though, this tart was perfect. The only change I would recommend is to double the pastry cream, as it barely filled the tart. It worked though because it gave me more room to fill the tart with berries. Lots, and lots and lots of berries.

My sister was in heaven. :P

I was never much of a berry person (although I did like the idea of berries) growing up. But since this looked so delicious I made myself try it because, well, how could I not. I mean, look at it!!

 

Here’s what I’ve learned from this tart about berries:

1. Blueberries are yummy.
2. Raspberries and Blackberries are best eaten together because they balance each other nicely. If they’re not, well, get ready to pucker a bit from the overly tart/sweet taste that they have.
3. Raspberries and Blackberries are very seedy. Nothing like picking seeds out of your teeth! LOL
4. The texture of strawberries are finally growing on me and I might… dare I say it… actually like them. *GASP*

Seriously though, this tart was the perfect balance of yumminess with a touch of awesome and a hint of fantastic. It will be the star of your meal, and you will receive compliment after compliment.

It’s perfection in a shortbread crust.

 

Kay, enough with my blabbing, time to get to the important stuff! Here’s the recipe and photo walkthrough :)

Enjoy guys!

♥ Kate

Mixed Berry Tart        [click to print]

Serves 8 (by Williams-Sonoma)

Pastry Ingredients

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/8 tsp salt
8 tbsp (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 egg yolk, beaten with 2 tbsp heavy cream

 

Vanilla Pastry Cream Ingredients

3 tbsp granulated sugar
1 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tbsp cornstarch
2 egg yolks
2/3 cup milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

 

Pastry Method

1. Position a rack in the lower third of an oven and preheat to 425 degrees F.

2. For the pastry, combine the flour, granulated sugar and salt in the bowl of a food processor and pulse a few times to mix.

3. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal.

4. Add the egg yolk mixture and pulse until the dough holds together when squeezed,

5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until it comes together in a ball.

6. Shape into a 5-inch disk, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. (Make vanilla pastry cream while pastry is in the refrigerator.)

7. Once the pastry is done refrigerating, roll out the dough into an 11-inch round on a floured surface.

8. Transfer to a 9-inch tart dish and trim the edges to make them flush with the rim (if the dough starts to break, just piece it together in the dish).

9. Line the pastry with parchment paper, fill with pie weights, rice or beans and bake for 5 minutes.

10. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.

11. Remove the pie weights and parchment paper and, using a fork, poke holes in the bottom of the crust.

12. Bake until the crust is golden, 15-20 minutes more.

13. Transfer to a wire rack and let cook for about 1 hour.

Vanilla Pastry Cream Method

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the granulated sugar, flour, cornstarch and egg yolks on medium until thick and pale yellow, 2-3 minutes.

2. In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the milk and vanilla and bring to a simmer.

3. While stirring, pour half the milk into the sugar mixture until combined, then pour this mixture back into the pan with the remaining milk and place over medium-low heat.

4. Cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens and starts to bubble, 1-2 minutes.

5. Be sure to scrape the sides and corners of the pan while whisking to prevent scorching.

6. Pour the pastry cream into a clean bowl and cover the surface with parchment paper.

7. Let cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for 1 hour.

To serve, spoon the pastry cream into the crust, arrange the berries on top and dust with confectioners sugar. Top with homemade whipped cream.

Photo Walkthrough:

Everything you’ll need to make the pastry crust.

Add your flour, sugar, and salt to your food processor, then pulse a few times to combine.

Add your butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal.

Combine egg yolks and heavy cream, then add to the mixture and pulse until the doug holds together when squeezed.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until it comes together in a ball. Don’t be gentle about the kneading either. Nead the heck out of it!! Then shape into a 5-inch disk, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Now it’s time for the pastry cream while this chills.

Everything you’ll need to make the vanilla pastry cream.

Apparently I forgot to take 2 pictures… So please forgive me, but it’s really easy so it’s not a huge loss!

Combine your sugar, flour, cornstarch, and egg yolks in an electric mixer (with the whisk attachment), and beat on medium speed until thick and pale yellow, 2-3 minutes.

In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the milk and vanilla and bring to a simmer.

While stirring, pour half the milk into the sugar mixture until combined, then pour this mixture back into the pan with the remaining milk and place over medium-low heat. Cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens and starts to bubble, 1-2 minutes. Be sure to scrape the sides and corners of the pan while whisking to prevent scorching.

Once it’s thick, pour the pastry cream into a clean bowl and cover with parchment paper. Let it come to room temperature, then refrigerate for an hour.

Once the pastry cream is in the fridge, pull out the pastry dough and start to roll it out. If it’s still really crumbly, be sure to knead it some more (I had to). After it’s rolled out (to fit a 9-inch tart pan) transfer it. As you can see with mine, the tart pan actually sliced through my dough. But don’t fret, just patch it with the leftover dough. No one will see that you patched it when they’re eating it because it will be filled with the pastry cream and berries!!

Once your dough is in the tart pan, line it with parchment paper (I was out of parchment paper, but aluminum foil is a good substitute).Then fill with pie weights, rice, or beans. Whatever you have handy will do the job just fine. Place it in the oven and bake for 5 minutes. Take it out of the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F, and remove the parchment paper and weights. Using a fork, poke holes all over the bottom of the crust.

Place the crust back in the oven and bake until golden brown, about 15-20 more minutes. When it’s done, transfer to a wire rack and cool for 1 hour.

To serve, pour pastry cream into crust and spread evenly. Top with washed berries, dust with powdered sugar, and serve with homemade whipped cream. YUM!