Paul Hollywood's strawberry tarts recipe

Paul Hollywood’s simple recipe for strawberry tarts will make you a pastry pro in no time. 

Cream, sweet pastry and juicy, fresh strawberries - what’s not to like about strawberry tarts? The Bake-off judge shows us how to make shortcrust pastry and creme patissiere from scratch with delicious results, sharing some handy tips and tricks along the way. We recommend making during the summer months, between May and September, when British strawberries are in season and at their most flavoursome. Perfect for an afternoon tea or a sweet summer picnic.

Ingredients

For the pastry

• 225g plain flour
• 110g butter
• 80g sugar
• 1 large egg, whisked

For the creme patisserie

• 2 free-range eggs
• 30g/1.5oz caster sugar
• 1 tsps corn flour
• 15g/ ½oz plain flour
• 25g/1oz butter
• 140ml milk
• Vanilla pod
• 250g strawberries
• Icing sugar for dusting

Method

1. For the pastry, rub the butter and the flour together by hand, using your finger tips. The mix should look like large bread crumbs. Add the whole whisked egg and the sugar. Bring all the ingredients together to form a ball of pastry. Wrap in cling film and chill for at least 20 minutes
2. For the crème patisserie, whisk the egg yolks and sugar together in a bowl until pale and light. Fold in the corn flour and flour. Bring the milk to the boil in a small saucepan and then whisk it gradually into the egg mixture Pour the mixture into a clean pan and bring it slowly to the boil until it thickens. Simmer for a minute and then take the pan off the heat. Pass through a sift. Split vanilla pod in half length ways, scrape out the seeds and add to the mixture. Cover with cling film and allow to cool. Then place in a piping bag.
3. Pre-heat oven to 170°C/150°C fan/325°F/Gas Mark 3.
4. Roll out pastry to about 4mm thick. Carefully line the four tartlet tins. Leaving an over hang of pastry. Place on a baking tray. Chill for twenty minutes. Then blind bake pastry for ten minutes.
5. Turn down oven to 160°C/140°C fan/300°F/Gas Mark 2. Remove baking beans and prick pastry with a fork and cook for a further ten minutes. Egg wash tarts and cook for a further five minutes. Leave the pastry in the tins and allow to cool. With a small edged serrated knife, trim the excess pastry from the tins. Being very delicate. Remove pastry cases from tartlet tins.
6. Pipe in the vanilla crème patisserie. Hull three strawberries slice them three quarters the way down, so the slices are still connected. Fan out strawberries, arrange on top of the crème patisserie. Dust with icing sugar.

Tips for making Paul Hollywood's strawberry tarts:

Ready-made shop bought shortcrust pastry can be used here to save on time.

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