Author Notes
Inspired by preserves I made out of Kim Boyce’s Good to the Grain last spring, lime stands in for the usual rhubarb to brighten the strawberries in this rustic tart. For the crust, I adapted Joanne Chang’s pate brisee recipe, adjusting the proportions slightly for a thinner shell. I like her use of egg yolks (I used just one here), which makes the dough more forgiving. I baked this free-form on a parchment-lined sheet pan, but I’d suggest a pie dish if your berries are super juicey. I threw in a handful of blackberries, just cause I had them lying around. Any berries or combination of them would work great. —Midge
Test Kitchen Notes
WHO: Midge is a journalist living in Charleston.
WHAT: Strawberries cozy up to an unexpected partner -- lime -- and get heaped into a rich, forgiving crust.
HOW: Make a pate brisee, and while it's resting, macerate your berries. Roll out the dough, fill it, gather up the edges, and bake.
WHY WE LOVE IT: We love that Midge turns to lime instead of rhubarb to edge out the strawberries' sweetness -- it's a pairing we'll turn to all summer long. The combo of fresh strawberries and strawberry jam makes for a rich filling; wrapped up in an easy pate brisee, it's a dessert that's unforgettable.
—The Editors
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Ingredients
- Tart Crust (makes 2)
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2 cups
all purpose flour
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1 teaspoon
sea salt
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2 teaspoons
sugar
-
1 cup
cold unsalted butter, cut into uniformed-sized cubes
-
1
large egg yolk
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3 tablespoons
heavy cream, divided
-
small glass
ice water
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1 tablespoon
sanding sugar, granulated sugar is fine if you don't have the fancy stuff on hand
- Filling
-
4 cups
strawberries, rinsed, hulled, and halved (quarter the honkin ones)
-
1/4-1/3 cups
sugar, depending on the sweetness of your berries
-
2 tablespoons
strawberry jam, preferably homemade
-
3 tablespoons
cornstarch
-
1
lime, zested and juiced
Directions
-
Sift flour, salt, and sugar together by hand or in bowl of standing mixer.
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Add butter to flour mixture. Mix on low speed (or cut into flour quickly by hand) just until it becomes a pebbly mixture, about 30 -45 seconds.
-
Whisk together egg yolk and two tablespoons of the cream and mix into lour mixture.
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Sprinkle 2-3 tablespoons of ice water into mixture and gently combine until the dough starts to hold together. Add more water as needed.
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Gather up the dough and form into two one inch-thick disks. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to four days. The recipe makes double the amount you need; freeze the other half or roll it out and cut it into strips for a lattice topping.
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Meanwhile, mix berries with sugar, lime zest and juice, cornstarch, and jam. Let sit for about 20 minutes.
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Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
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On a floured surface, roll out one disk of dough to about 1/8 inch-thick. Carefully fold the dough in half and then in quarters to transfer to a pie dish or parchment-lined sheet pan.
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Fill the crust with the berry mixture. Gently gather and fold the overhanging crust over the pie. Brush with the remaining cream and sprinkle generously with sugar.
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If you’re using a pie dish, consider sticking a sheet pan underneath it to catch spills.
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Bake for 50-60 minutes until crust is golden and the filling, bubbling.
I’m a journalist who’s covered everything from illegal logging in Central America to merit pay for teachers, but these days I write mostly about travel. I’ve been lucky enough to find myself in some far-flung locales, where poking around markets and grocery stores is my favorite thing to do. Cooking, especially baking, is my way of winding down after a long day; there’s nothing like kneading bread dough to bring you back to earth.
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