Thursday, May 5, 2016

Strawberry Rose Tartlets

This Mother's Day show your mom how much you love and cherish her with these cute edible roses, made with fresh strawberries on top of a buttery, pastry crust filled with rich custard cream. 
Handcrafted, fresh and beautifully delicious!


Mother's Day is right around the corner, so what's better than celebrating your sweet mamma with these amazing strawberry-cream tartlets?!? 
And I'm not talking about those regular, same-old fruit little tarts. You know, the one with a sad-looking piece of half strawberry on top. Oh no! 
I'm talking about a handcrafted, perfectly crumbly tartlet, filled with velvety pastry cream, topped with a few slices of kiwis and an individually carved, rose-shaped strawberry.
These picture-perfect, edible flowers are sure to impress your mom (yes!! she will notice your artful knife skills! ) and show her how special she really is. After all, nothing says I love you as much as bunch of red roses... especially if they are oh-so yummy!


Are you thinking what I'm thinking?! These strawberry flowers are really awesome. You probably have seen them all over the internet. They are pretty fashionable on Pinterest right now.
Once you see how easy it is to make them, you'll run for a knife and a big, juicy strawberry to try it too. 
Make sure your knife is small, pointy, and sharp enough. And your strawberry is (relatively) big and firm. If you are right-handed, I suggest turning the strawberry in a counter-clockwise direction while you're cutting the petals, so you won't by mistake break a petal that you just cut. 
Ready to try?!? Let's get baking!

Ingredients: to make around 16 mini tarts
For the dough:
  • 4 oz (115 gr) of unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 egg
  • 1/3 cup (65 gr) of sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon of salt
  • 1 1/3 cup (200 gr) of all-purpose flour
For the custard cream:
  • 10 fl oz (300 ml) of milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 1/3 cup (65 gr) of sugar 
  • 2 tablespoons (20 gr) of corn starch
For the top:
  • around 16 large strawberries
  • about 4 kiwis
  • powdered sugar to decorate
Preparation time: about 60 minutes, plus one hour inactive
Directions:

1. Dough: Make sure to remember to remove the butter from the refrigerator at least 30 minutes before you start with the recipe.
In a large bowl add the softened butter, egg , sugar, vanilla extract and salt. Mix well until smooth.
Add the flour and blend well. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes or longer.

2. Custard cream: Warm up the milk until hot, but not boiling. In a medium size pan, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar, the corn starch and the vanilla extract until smooth and fluffy. Add the milk a little bit at a time, whisking well so that no lumps form. Whisk in the rest of the milk. 
Place the pan over medium heat and stir continuously until it reaches a slow boil. The cream will thicken, so be careful not to let it stick to the bottom. Lower the flame and cook for a couple of more minutes, until you reach the desired thickness. Pour the cream in a glass bowl and let it cook down.Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour.

3: Preheat the oven to 350° F (175° C).Grease the tartlets mold with butter and flour (or spray). Set aside. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough making sure it doesn't stick to the counter. Cut with round cookie cutter. Mine are 3 inch (7.5 cm) in diameter. Place them into the mold, pressing down gently with your fingers, trying not to stretch the dough. The upper diameter of my tartlet mold is 2.5 in (6.25 cm) each. You can use the dough cutouts to make more round cookies, just re-knead the dough and roll again. Bake the empty shells for about about 12 minutes, in the middle of the oven, until just golden at the edges. You should be able to make 16 tartlets.

4. Let the tartlet shells cool down completely. When you are ready to serve, cut the strawberries in a rose-shape as shown in my pictures. You can also watch my quick video:

5. Fill the cookie cups with one tablespoon of custard cream. Peel, cut in half (lengthwise) and thinly slice the kiwis. Line 4 or 5 half slices of kiwi around the edges, as shown here. Top with the strawberry roses.
Store in the refrigerator if not eaten right away.
Enjoy :)
 














3 comments:

  1. Such a work of art. I can see this with kiwi and sugared cranberries, etc. An endless use of fruits maybe minus the strawberry flower shape. Thank you for posting.

    ReplyDelete