RAINBOW FRUIT TART

Baking is such a relaxing and therapeutic activity. I love the precision is involves, but at the same time, cause I am so comfortable with baking, I can play around with ingredients and flavors now, and I know it will still turn out good. I took a Pie and Tart class from the Tante Marie Cooking School a few years ago, which was one of the most wonderful classes ever. I learnt to make so many different kinds of pies and tarts, and my favorite was the fruit tart! I love how the Pate’ sable’e Dough is so simple to make, and also the pastry cream is not too sweet, letting the flavors of the summer fruit shine through. 

My daughter has loved rainbows and colors ever since she could understand colors! She loves rainbow foods, and I would make yogurt snacks for her, with rainbow fruits since she was a baby. When I am cutting vegetables for our dinners, she will come by and eat raw veggies just like that, making me a proud mama! I was itching to bake something a couple weekends ago, and she said ” Mama, why don’t you make a rainbow tart?” Looked into my fruit stash and I pretty much had everything for the Rainbow Tart, except Kiwis, but I had Green Pluots, which would work just as well for the green color in the rainbow!

FENNEL PASTRY CREAM:

Pastry cream is a form of custard, that is made with milk, egg yolks and corn starch essentially. It comes together very easily, but is requires a day chilling in the fridge. Pastry cream contains the following ingredients:

• Whole milk: Do not substitute it with a lower fat milk. The fat is required in the milk to work with the other ingredients, to form a good consistency of the pastry cream.
• Egg yolks: Egg yolks are rich and help to give the pastry cream, that silky smooth texture.
• Corn Starch: This helps to thicken the pastry cream.
• Granulated sugar: A small amount is required to sweeten the pastry cream.
• Fennel seeds: I love flavoring my pastry cream, and I have used fennel here, giving it that wonderful licorice taste, that I so love.
• Vanilla extract: Always vanilla extract to flavor it really well!

You can use any number of different ways to flavor your pastry cream. I have tried so many different spices, always whole spices, that are steeped into the whole milk, to give it that slight aromatics, and flavor, to complement the dessert.

PATE SABLE DOUGH:

The recipe here, makes 2 open rainbow tart doughs. You can use it to make different kinds of tarts during the summer. You would simply need to let the second disc/dough stay out for a few minutes, and then roll it out otherwise it will be too hard to roll it out.

What does the pate sable dough contain? It has the following ingredients:

• All purpose flour : I have actually substituted about a cup of flour with dark rye flour and the dough is wonderful, as seen here.
• Ground ginger: I love adding spices to my doughs, and ginger goes really well with fruit, so I add ground ginger in my sable dough.
• Granulated sugar : to sweeten the dough slightly. You can use this tart dough to make a savory open tart as well. The sweetness in the dough will be offset with the savory filling.
• Unsalted cold butter: Unsalted cold butter is added to tart dough to firstly bind the dough, and secondly give it that flakiness and lightness in the dough that is signature of a tart/pie dough.
• Egg : an egg is also added to bind the dough together
• Vanilla extract : I always flavor all doughs with vanilla extract. It is literally my jam!
• a pinch of salt: Always a pinch of salt to balance out the sweetness.

The dough is made, divided into two halves, and wrapped in a plastic wrap separately to make 2 round discs, which are then stored in the fridge, where the dough comes together. It needs time to settle, before rolling it and baking the tart.

BLIND BAKING THE TART SHELL:

I use a 9 inch tart shell to bake off the tart shell. It is linked here. The tart dough is removed from the fridge, rolled out with some extra flour to help roll it out, and then put on top of the pan. You have to nudge it to have clean sides and adhere to the sides. Trim off the edges, as there will be a bit of overhang always.

Blind baking is the process of putting a parchment paper on top of the tart shell, before it is baked off in the oven. The paper is then filled with pie weights so that the tart shell does not puff up in the oven and also helps with cooking the shell but not browning it quickly. You bake it this way for 15 minutes. Then remove the parchment paper along with the pie weights, and then bake it off again in the oven for about 10 minutes, or until golden brown in color. Let cool completely before putting any filling in the tart.

ASSEMBLY:

To make your Rainbow Fruit Tart, use different fruits that are in season in summer, to bring out the best colors on the tart. In my new pictures, i have used raspberries, strawberries, mango, peaches, kiwi, blueberries, pluots and blackberries to decorate the tart. Use your creativity and even change up the pattern if you feel like.

To assemble, I layer the cooled fennel pastry cream, onto the cooled tart, and I use a small offset spatula to spread it evenly. I layer the fruits on the top, in an even fashion. And finally glaze it with apricot jam to give it that signature tart shine. Always serve it cold, because that is the way it tastes the best!

I hope you enjoy this recipe and get a chance to make this wonderful tart. If you do make it, please do not forget to use the hashtag #thejamlab on Instagram and/or leave a comment in the blog post below.

Much Love!

Amisha

Rainbow Fruit Tart

July 8, 2016

by Amisha

Category Dessert Jam Recipes Summer Tarts

Persons

8

Ingredients

• Basic Pate Sable'e Dough
• (makes 2 9" tarts)
• 2 1/2 cups (300 g) all purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon ginger powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
• 2 sticks (226 g) unsalted butter, cold, cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract/vanilla bean paste
• Fennel Pastry Cream:
• 1 1/4 cups (300 g) whole milk
• 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 3 tablespoons (21 g)cornstarch
• 3 egg yolks
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 to 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Fruits:
• 3 to 4 blackberries
• 10 to 12 blueberries
• 1 pluot, halved and thinly sliced, remove the ends of the halves, you want even slices.
• 1 green pluot or kiwis, halved and thinly sliced, remove the ends of the halves, you want even slices.
• 1 nectarine, halved and thinly sliced, remove the ends of the halves, you want even slices
• 2 peaches, halved and thinly sliced, remove the ends of the halves, you want even slices
• 1 mango, cut slices, and cut each half into thin slices
• 6-8 strawberries, hulled and thinly sliced, get all even sizes as much as possible
• 1 cup raspberries
• Glaze:
• 3 to 4 tablespoons of the Apricot Jam
• 2 tablespoons of water

Instructions

1. For the pate sable'e dough recipe:
2. Place all the dry ingredients in a food processor, and pulse to mix.
3. In a small bowl, add the egg and vanilla and beat with a fork to combine.
4. Cube the chilled butter into small square chunks and pulse into the food processor until the butter is broken down into tiny bits. Pour in the egg mixture into the running food processor until it all comes together.
5. Fraisage : is to remove all the pastry dough onto the counter top and press into it away from you, with the edge of your palm, and continue the strokes a few times to bring the dough together and create flakiness into the dough. Scrap any bits off the counter, and divide into two 12oz portions. Press into a flat disk and wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate atleast for 30 minutes.
6. The dough can then be rolled into a tart pan.
7. To make the tart:
8. Preheat the oven the 375 degrees.
9. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the chilled pastry to a 11 inch circle, and about 1/8 inch thick. Place the dough gently on a 9 inch tart pan with a removable bottom and gently press into the sides. Trim the top. Line the tart shell with a parchment paper, Fill the paper with pie weights/raw beans to cover the entire pan, and bake the shell for 15 minutes. Remove it from the oven, take off the weights and paper and put it back into the oven for another 10 minutes until lightly brown. Remove the tart shell from the oven and let it cool.
10. Fennel Pastry Cream:
11. In a medium saucepan, over medium heat, add the milk and fennel seeds and let it simmer for about 3 to 4 minutes until it is hot.
12. Set aside a medium bowl with a fine mesh sieve.
13. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, add the egg yolks and sugar, and whisk vigorously for 2 to 3 minutes until the mixture is frothy and pale yellow. When you lift the whisk it should look smooth and the mixture should have a ribbon-like consistency. Whisk in the cornstarch and salt. The mixture will form a thick paste.
14. Slowly pour half the milk into the mixture, whisking until smooth, making sure there are no lumps.
15. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan with the remaining milk and, whisk the mixture. Turn the heat on medium to low heat and continue to whisk, so that it does not stick to the bottom of the pan, until the mixture thickens within 5 minutes. It happens pretty quickly so do not leave the stove at this time.
16. Strain the mixture through the sieve into the bowl. Whisk in the butter and vanilla until smooth.
17. Place plastic wrap onto the pastry cream, so that it touches the pastry cream and does not form a skin.
18. Refrigerate overnight.
19. To assemble:
20. Fill the cooled tart shell with the pastry cream and smoothen it with a small offset spatula. Now starting with the outer rim, start with the raspberries, touching each other. Then start with the strawberries, with the pointed side up, all along the rim, very close to the raspberries and touching each other too. Then add the peach slices all around. Then the mango slices all around. Next add the kiwi slices, then the blueberries, pluot slices and finally the blackberries in the center.
21. Glaze:
22. In a small saucepan, on low heat, add the jam and water, and let it form a smooth glaze for a minute or so. You can strain it through a strainer to make it smooth and silky. Now with a pastry brush, coat all the fruits gently with the glaze, to give it that beautiful shine.
23. Put it back in the fridge. Let set for an hour. Serve cold.

Tags

Berries,

color,

dark rye flour,

French,

fresh,

fruit,

pastry cream,

rainbow,

stone fruit,

summer,

tart

https://thejamlab.co/2016/07/08/rainbow-fruit-tart/