Healthy Fresh Fruit Tart with Vanilla Pastry Cream

Healthy Fresh Fruit Tart with Vanilla Pastry Cream

Vanilla Pastry Cream:
1 cup Half and Half
3 Large Egg Yokes
1/3 cup Powdered Honey
2 Tablespoons Cornstarch
1 Tablespoon White Spelt Flour or White Flour
Pinch of Sea Salt
1 Tablespoon Unsalted Butter
2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract

Tart Crust:
1 1/2 cups White Spelt Flour or White Flour
1/4 cup Powdered Honey
Dash of Sea Salt
1/4 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
1 1/4 stick Ice Cold Butter, cut into 1/4 inch cubes
2-3 Tablespoons Ice Cold Water
Washed Fruit of choice

FOR THE PASTRY: In a small sauce pan, gently warm the half and half on medium low heat. Gently warm it until you see steam coming up but do not bring to a simmer or boil. While the half and half is warming, start on the rest of the ingredients. In a medium sized bowl, combine egg yokes, salt, powdered honey, cornstarch and flour. Whisk mixture together until smooth. Once the egg mixture is smooth and creamy and the half and half is warm, carefully pour half of the warm half and half into the bowl with the egg mixture and quickly whisk together. This process helps temper the eggs. Whisk until the mixture is well combined.

Next, pour this mixture back into the sauce pan with the rest of the half and half. Place the pan back on the medium low heat and begin whisking to incorporate. Continue whisking the mixture until it become thick and creamy. If the mixture starts to simmer, lift it from the heat and keep whisking. Don’t worry if it doesn’t thicken up after a couple of minutes, just keep whisking! It will begin to thicken after about 4 or 5 minutes. Then whisk in the butter. Take the cream off the heat and add the vanilla.

At this point, pour the cream mixture through a fine mesh sieve or strainer into a clean bowl. If you don’t have one of these, that’s okay since the fruit placed over it will hide any imperfections. Straining ensures that you will have an extra smooth and creamy pastry cream. When all the cream is in the clean bowl, cover it tightly with the plastic wrap (plastic wrap coating the cream) and place in the refrigerator to chill for 3 to 5 hours.

While cream is chilling, begin on the tart crust dough. In a food processor or large bowl, mix flour, honey, and salt. Pulse until well combined. Add the vanilla and ice cold butter chunks. Slowly, add the ice cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time. If using a food processor, pulse on and off while slowly adding the water. Mix until the dough comes together. Dump the dough onto a piece of plastic wrap. Form the dough into a disk, wrap with the plastic wrap and chill in the freezer for 5 minutes.

While the dough is chilling, preheat your oven. Take tart pan and generously butter the bottoms and sides. I used a 10 1/2 inch tart pan, but you can use a little bit small pan if you wish. Remove your dough from the freezer and dump it onto the tart pan. Using the plastic wrap or your fingers, gently mash the dough in to the pan to spread evenly. Press the dough to be about 1/4 inch thick if using a10 inch pan, thicker if you are using a smaller tart pan. Once your dough is spread out and even, gently poke the bottom of it with a fork to prevent rising. Bake covered at 400 degrees for 15-16 minutes. Remove from the oven and remove the cover. With a spoon, gently pat down any areas of the crust that may have puffed up. Return to oven and bake for an additional 1 to 2 minutes for a beautifully golden crust. Let the crust sit until completely cooled before assembling the tart.

Once tart crust is cooled, and your cream has been chilling for at least 3 hours, you can begin to assemble your tart. Remove your cream from the fridge and gently spoon it onto the tart crust. Spread the cream evenly and smoothly. Arrange the washed fruit as desired. Serve immediately or chill in the fridge until ready.