Berry Custard Tart
A crisp pastry shell filled with smooth vanilla pastry cream and arranged with fresh strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries. The kind of dessert that looks like it took all day but doesn't.
- Total time
- 90 min
- Servings
- 8
- Calories
- 310
- Protein
- 6g
Ingredients
- 1.25 cups all-purpose flour (tart shell)
- ¼ cup powdered sugar (tart shell)
- ¼ tsp salt (tart shell)
- ½ cup cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes (tart shell)
- 1 large egg yolk (tart shell)
- 2 to 3 tbsp ice cold water (tart shell)
- 2 cups whole milk (pastry cream)
- 4 large egg yolks (pastry cream)
- ½ cup granulated sugar (pastry cream)
- 3 tbsp cornstarch (pastry cream)
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter (pastry cream)
- 1.5 tsp pure vanilla extract (pastry cream)
- ¼ tsp salt (pastry cream)
- 1 cup fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
- 1 cup fresh blueberries
- ½ cup fresh raspberries
- 2 tbsp apricot jam or seedless fruit jam (optional glaze)
- 1 tbsp warm water (for thinning the glaze)
Instructions
- 1
Make the tart shell dough first as it needs to rest. In a large bowl or food processor, combine the flour, powdered sugar, and salt.
- 2
Add the cold butter cubes all at once. Pulse or rub with fingertips until the mixture looks like coarse, sandy crumbs with no large butter pieces remaining.
- 3
Add the egg yolk and 2 tablespoons of ice cold water. Mix just until the dough starts to come together into a shaggy mass. Add remaining water a few drops at a time if it still looks dry.
- 4
Press the dough into a flat disc — do not knead. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- 5
While the dough rests, make the pastry cream. Pour the milk into a medium saucepan and heat over medium heat until it just begins to steam. Do not boil. Remove from heat.
- 6
In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch, and salt until pale yellow and smooth.
- 7
Slowly pour the hot milk into the egg mixture while whisking constantly and vigorously. Pour in a thin, slow stream to avoid scrambling the eggs. Pour the entire mixture back into the saucepan.
- 8
Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, for 2 to 4 minutes until the mixture thickens dramatically. Keep whisking for another 30 seconds once thickened.
- 9
Remove from heat. Add the butter and vanilla and whisk until smooth and glossy.
- 10
Pour the pastry cream into a clean bowl. Press plastic wrap directly onto the surface with no air gaps. Refrigerate until fully cold, at least 1 hour.
- 11
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Roll the dough out into a circle slightly larger than your tart pan. Drape over the pan and press into the fluted sides without stretching. Trim excess.
- 12
Prick the bottom with a fork about 12 to 15 times.
- 13
Line the tart shell with parchment and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 18 minutes until the sides look set.
- 14
Remove the parchment and weights. Bake for another 8 to 12 minutes until the bottom is fully golden brown. Let cool completely.
- 15
Whisk the chilled pastry cream briefly to smooth it out. Spread evenly into the cooled tart shell.
- 16
Arrange the fresh fruit decoratively on top — a ring of strawberries around the edge, blueberries inside that, raspberries in the center.
- 17
For a professional finish, heat the apricot jam with warm water until loose and brush lightly over the fruit.
- 18
Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before slicing. Serve cold.
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