Strawberry Mascarpone Tart

I have always wanted to make one of those fancy fruit tarts that you see in French bakeries with the perfect crust and the glossy fruit. After picking two flats of berries, I had more than enough to try different recipes, so I picked out the prettiest ones to put on display on my tart.


We went to our favorite local fruit farm to pick some fresh berries, which is a very comforting and nostalgic activity for me as this was my first job growing up. I would pick strawberries straddled over the rows of berries for hours. So, leisurely picking two flats is a cinch.

We had a school picnic to attend, so I thought this would be a good seasonal dessert to bring along. I had saved aside this recipe from Food 52 for the perfect occasion and this was it.

I tried my best to arrange my strawberries nicely to match their pristine arrangement. Below is the Food 52 tart image followed by mine.  Not bad, right? The recipe is below and updated to include all the ingredients along with a few notes so go ahead and try your own strawberry t(art).

Recipe for Strawberry Mascarpone Tart

Adapted from Food 52

Ingredients:

Crust

2 tablespoons cream

1 egg yolk

1 stick of butter

1/4 cup granulated sugar 

1 1/2 cups flour

1 pinch salt

Filling

1 quart strawberries (washed, hulled and sliced)

8 ounces chilled mascarpone

1 tablespoon rum (I would suggest leaving this out)

1/4 cup sugar 

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

 Directons:

For the crust: Combine the egg yolk and cream. In a food processor, pulse together the butter, sugar, salt, and flour until you have something that resembles coarse meal. With the motor running, pour in the egg yolk and cream. Process until the dough comes together in a ball around the blade. Remove dough from the processor bowl. Bring together into a ball quickly. Press into an 8-inch removable-bottom fluted tart pan. Pierce lightly with fork all over the crust. Butter the shiny side of a piece of aluminum foil and cover the tart pan tightly. Freeze for at least two hours. 

Preheat the oven to 375 F. Bake the tart pan (on a baking sheet) for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking another 10 minutes. Allow the crust to cool completely. 

Combine the sliced strawberries with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Allow them to rest for 15 minutes. While the crust is in the oven, start on the filling. Combine the mascarpone,  2 tablespoons of sugar, and vanilla extract and whisk until glossy. (NOTE: the filling may separate if the mascarpone is not chilled so work quickly.) If you like the taste of rum, go ahead and include it, but I felt that even the small amount overtook the creamy mascarpone flavor too much. Taste and adjust sugar if necessary. Chill the filling while the crust cools. When the crust has cooled completely, spread the filling over it using a rubber spatula. Next, arrange the sliced strawberries over the the filling. Return assembled tart to fridge if not serving immediately, but it's best served the day it is made.