Mid-Summer Day’s Tart
Summer is well under way…and almost over?! Which means that if you haven’t taken advantage of the sumptuous berries at our west coast doorstep, you’d better get baking!!
Here is a very simple, yet colourful and fruity dessert, making any berry a worthy focus. Use your favourite fruit, in solo or in combination with others. I love this pastry base, which is a creamy, lemony crust, thanks to the addition of egg and lemon flavours. It’s so versatile as a pastry foundation, so use your imagination!
Pastry Base:
3 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup white sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
lemon zest from one large lemon
2 sticks cold unsalted butter, sliced into sixteen pieces
1 egg
1/4 cup cream
3-4 tbsp milk or water
1 tbsp limoncello
1 tsp lemon extract
4 ice cubes
Fruit Filling:
3 cups frozen fruit combination, thawed, drained (reserve liquid)
1 tbsp corn starch, dissolved with 2 tbsp reserved fruit juice
1 cup sugar
lemon juice from one lemon
Streusel topping:
1 1/2 cups oats
1/2 cup flour
2 tsp salt
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 stick unsalted butter
Egg Wash: 1 whole egg, whisked smooth
1. Mix flour, sugar and lemon zest in large metal bowl. Combine egg with liquids, mixing well. Add in the ice for half a minute to ensure wet ingredients are cold. Remove ice.
2. Cut cold butter quickly into dry ingredients until coarse crumbs form. Add in wet ingredients. Turn onto surface and quickly form into flat disk. Plastic wrap and refrigerate for two hours. When ready, preheat oven to 325°F.
3. Prepare streusel: combine all dry ingredients. Slice butter into chunky pieces, and rub into dry ingredients using your fingers, until large and small clumps form. Set aside.
4. Mix drained fruit, sugar, and lemon together. In small bowl, microwave corn starch in fruit juice for 20-30 seconds, or until thickened. Mix starch into fruit.
5. Roll out cold pastry dough to 1/2 inch thick, and press into a 10” square pan. Brush bottom with egg wash. Spread fruit over pastry, top with streusel.
6. Bake for 25 minutes or until top is light brown.
Serve in squares/rectangles and with a large scoop of vanilla ice cream. Fantastic!
