Berry Tartlets with Vanilla Pastry Cream

Planning a relaxed afternoon with friends and looking for something sweet to serve with coffee? Fruit tartlets with berries and vanilla pastry cream fit the occasion beautifully. Easy to portion and lovely to look at, these little tarts bring a touch of summer to the table and also make a welcoming dessert after a shared meal.

Serves 4 · Makes 8 small tartlets about 8 cm across

Preparation 40 minutes · Chilling at least 1 hour · Baking 20 to 25 minutes

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Ingredients for berry tartlets

For the sweet shortcrust pastry

• 200 g plain flour

• 100 g cold butter, diced

• 60 g icing sugar

• 1 medium egg

• 1 pinch salt

For the vanilla pastry cream

• 300 ml whole milk

• 1 vanilla pod

• 2 medium egg yolks

• 50 g sugar

• 25 g cornflour

• 20 g butter

For the fruit topping

• 300 g mixed berries, such as raspberries, blueberries and blackberries

Method for berry tartlets

1. Chill the pastry

Quickly bring together the flour, butter, icing sugar, egg and salt to form a smooth dough. Flatten, cover and chill for at least 30 minutes. Keep kneading to a minimum for tender pastry cases.

2. Cook the vanilla pastry cream

Split the vanilla pod and scrape out the seeds. Heat 250 ml milk with the seeds and pod until just below boiling. Whisk the remaining 50 ml milk with the egg yolks, sugar and cornflour until smooth. Remove the pod. Slowly whisk the hot milk into the yolk mixture, then return everything to the pan. Bring to the boil while whisking, reduce the heat and allow to bubble for about 1 minute until clearly thickened.

3. Cool the cream

Remove from the heat and stir in the butter. Transfer to a shallow bowl, press suitable cling film directly onto the surface and allow to cool briefly. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

4. Blind bake the cases

Preheat the oven to 180 °C conventional heat. Roll out the pastry to about 3 mm thick and line 8 tartlet tins. Prick the bases, line with baking paper, add baking weights and blind bake for 15 minutes. Remove the paper and weights and bake for another 5 to 10 minutes until golden. Cool completely and remove from the tins.

5. Fill the tartlets

Whisk the chilled pastry cream until smooth and transfer to a piping bag. Gently rinse and thoroughly dry the berries, halving larger fruit. Pipe the cream into the pastry cases and top with berries. Serve as fresh as possible.

Summary

Vanilla and berries need only a delicate, crisp pastry base. Prepare the components ahead and assemble shortly before eating.

Flexi Tips

Prepare the cases and pastry cream separately a day ahead. Keep the cream refrigerated and the cases dry and airtight. Use the leftover egg whites for meringues.

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