My mom’s strawberry and pastry cream tart… Those words alone evoke an idyllic lazy summer day to me. It’s the perfect tart to make especially now that the Quebec strawberries are in season and oh so sweet.

I don’t know how you feel about pastry cream but it’s one of my all-time favourite things to eat! My mother used to hide it from me when I was little because I could eat the whole bowl with a spoon! So you can understand how the combination of the flaky tart shell, the luscious pastry cream and the sweet strawberries is just absolutely perfect! You can definitely use the same dough and cream with other fruits like raspberries and maybe even peaches!

Dough (pâte brisée)

Ingredients

• 400g flour
• 200g butter, softened
• 100g icing sugar
• 1 egg
• Vanilla extract

Instructions:

1. Mix all the ingredients together in your cake mixer until the dough comes together
2. Knead the dough a couple of minutes on a lightly floured surface then roll it out with a lightly floured rolling pin and place it gently in a 9″ tart mold
3. Lightly prick the bottom and sides of the dough with a fork and chill it for 30 minutes (my mom never chills her dough but for some reason it makes me feel better to do so)
4. Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees and bake the tart shell until it’s golden brown, about 45 minutes
5. Let it cool completely

Note: This step can be made a day ahead, just make sure to wrap the shell well after it’s cooled completely and to store it in a dry place

Pastry cream (crème pâtissière)

Ingredients:

• 3 egg yolks
• 2 cups of whole milk
• 100g icing sugar
• 50g flour
• 1 vanilla bean

Instructions:

1. Cut the vanilla pod in half lengthwise and scrape the seeds with the back of a knife. Mix the seeds with the milk and warm in a pot.
2. In a second pot, whisk the egg yolks and sugar vigorously until well incorporated. Add the flour and mix well.
3. Put the pot with the egg mixture on the stove top on medium heat and add the milk slowly while constantly stirring. Keep stirring until the pastry cream becomes thick
4. Strain it into a bowl and let it cool completely
5. You can make this a day or 2 ahead of time just make sure to refrigerate it and to cover it with plastic wrap directly on the cream so it doesn’t develop a “film”

Assembly:

1. Prepare the strawberries by washing and hulling them
2. Fill the tart shell with the pastry cream and arrange the strawberries in concentric circles around the tart

Note: If the strawberries are not sweet enough, dilute a bit of strawberry jam with some water and use it as a glaze on the strawberries