Strawberry Cream Cheese Tart

I purchased a flat of strawberries yesterday as my own plants do not begin bearing fruit until June and I could no longer bear the wait. As they were inexpensive, I bought a large flat and today I put every last berry to use. Between the strawberry/banana sorbet and the strawberry tart, I managed to use them all. I selected luckily, as there was not a single bad berry in the entire flat.

This is an elaborate tart to make and it took all day. Granted, with a two year old running about, I had a fair amount of interruption, but it was a time-consuming process. You could, if pressed for time, make a glaze from red currant jam and save yourself the hassle of mashing berries, extracting juice and cooking it to filling.

I realise it is sort of typical to adorn this tart with whipped cream piped out from a pastry tube. Personally, that just seems gauche to me. I have some double cream in the icebox that can be served alongside it, but really, I think the tart is rich enough as is (with the cream cheese base and all).

Now I need to get back to the grocer and buy another flat of berries for the freezer.



For The Sugar Crust Shell:
(Note-this is a very soft crust and while it can be done as a tart shell, I’m not brave enough to try it. Basically, it is a sugar cookie).

2 cups sifted all purpose flour
7 tablespoons sugar
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
5 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons solid vegetable shortening
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Combine dry ingredients and cut in the butter and shortening until a fine meal is achieved. You will need to use your fingertips after the initial cutting in. Blend in egg and vanilla. Knead into a ball quickly. Work the dough in small pieced by smearing it with the heel of your hand to incorporate the butter throughout. Form into a ball, wrap in waxed paper and refrigerate two hours until firm.

Roll out carefully, and place in pie plate (or if you’re daring a flan ring).

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. and grease a piece of foil. Fit it over the crust and weight it with a handful of dried beans. Bake for 5-6 minutes. Remove the foil and prick the inside of the crust with a fork numerous times. Return to oven and bake until it begins to pull away from the sides and turns golden. Cool completely before using.

For the Cream Cheese Base

8 oz. Cream Cheese (softened)
½ cup caster sugar
1/8 tsp vanilla

Combine and spread in the bottom of the tart.
Top with a layer of attractive strawberries.

For The Glaze:

1 qt (approximately) strawberries mashed and extracted of juice. You want a total of 1 ½ cups juice and you may need more or less berries to get there. If you come-up a bit short, top it off with water.
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch

Bring juice to boiling slowly and add the sugar and cornstarch. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until it returns to a boil. Boil 1 minute (keep the mixture moving). Remove from heat and cool before using to glaze berries.