Mango Berry Tart
Hello guys!! Sorry for the haitus! I've been traveling for wedding festivities and will be traveling throughout August and September, but I hope to post once a week! This week I decided to try to make a fruit tart but assemble it with more artistic freedom.
For those of you who have seen my Asian-style sponge cakes you know I love to follow lines and patterns. So assembling this tart was bit more challenging, but I'm glad I gave it a try! I also decided to tweak my pastry cream recipe since I was going for a smoother, lighter cream. However, it resulted in a filling that was runny and messy to serve. The individual slices didn't look too good (hence no pictures), but I was told it was still delicious (just not pretty haha)! I'll be working on creating a better pastry cream that's also stable. Be on the look out :)
INGREDIENTS:
For the crust:
150g All Purpose Flour
1/2 cup cold Unsalted Butter
1/4 tsp Salt
3 Tbsp Ice Water
For the Pastry Cream:
2 cups Whole Milk
3 Tbsp Honey
3 Egg Yolks
1/4 cup White Granulated Sugar
2 Tbsp Cornstarch (3 Tbsp would have made for more stable filling, but I'll have to try that out next time)
2 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
For the Toppings:
2 Mangos
Berries
Whipped Cream
Instructions:
1. Measure 145g of All Purpose Flour and salt and place on a clean working surface (like a table or countertop).
2. Measure the water and place in freezer.
3. Cube the butter and place on top of the flour.
4. Using a fork or pastry blender press butter into flour to create smaller, flatter chunks of butter in the flour. Keep working until most of the pieces of butter are pea-sized.
5. Create well in the center of the flour-butter mixture. Pour the ice water into the middle and fold in the mixture to incorporate. Gently work until it becomes a dough. (You don't want to work it till it's smooth. You still want to see chunks of butter. Just work it until it holds together and can be shaped into a circle.) Wrap the pie dough with saran wrap and place in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours.
6. Meanwhile place the milk and honey in a sauce pan. Mix over medium-low heat just to dissolve.
7. Place egg yolks and sugar into a separate bowl and whisk until light yellow in color. Add the cornstarch.
8. Pour the warm milk into the egg yolk mixture, making sure to whisk rapidly to prevent curdling. Pour the entire mixture back into the sauce pan and stir over medium heat.
9. Cook until mixture thickens and simmers. Remove from heat and add the butter and vanilla and stir.
10. Pour the mixture over a strainer and bowl to remove any clumps. Set aside to cool.
11. Prepare your mangos by washing and slicing off the ends. I cut those pieces into halves and removed the skin. Slice the mangos vertically if you want to achieve a similar look. Otherwise cut them however you would like! Wash your berries and set aside in fridge until it's ready to assemble.
12. After 2 hours, remove the pie dough from the fridge and use the remaining flour to dust a clean surface and a rolling pin. Roll the pie crust until it's 2 inches beyond the bottom of your tart pan. Place pie crust on top of pan and work into the grooves, making sure the sides of the pie crust are thicker than the bottom and taller than the edges (The pie crust shrinks in the oven). Place tart pan with crust in fridge for one more hour.
13. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Place a circular piece of parchment with dry beans on top of the crust (this method is referred to as blind baking) and bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes. Remove from oven and remove the beans and parchment paper. Place the crust back in the oven for another 10 minutes until crust is golden brown.
14. After crust has cooled, cover the bottom of the crust with melted chocolate to prevent a soggy crust. You may need to place the crust in the fridge for the chocolate to harden before adding the filling.
15. Pour the pastry cream into the pie crust. Assemble the fruit on top and pipe some whipped cream on top if you want! Serve and enjoy :)
