Serves 4
For The Sablé
- 250g plain flour- sifted
- Pinch of salt
- 100g icing sugar
- 175g cold unsalted butter
- 10g whole egg yolk
- 6g whole egg
- 1/4 vanilla pod split lengthways (this will be enough for about 10 cases, so only use what you need, and reserve the rest for another day)
For The Crème Patisserie
- 375ml milk
- 1/2 vanilla pod split lengthways
- 90g egg yolks
- 75g caster sugar
- 38g all purpose flour
- 225ml double cream, whipped (this will be for about 10 cases, so only use what you need, and reserve the rest for another day)
For The Strawberry Gel
- 500g strawberry purée
- 50 ml water
- 7g agar
For The Macerated Strawberries
- 300g strawberries
- Icing sugar
- Zest of 1/2 lemon
For The Strawberry Compote
- 300g strawberries
- 1 tablespoon caster sugar
For The Poppy Seed Tuile
- 50g isomalt sugar (www.souschef.com)
- 5g poppy seeds
Method
First, make the sablé cases by placing the dry ingredients in a bowl, adding the cubed butter and rubbing together. Make a well in the center; add the wet ingredients and seeds scraped from the split vanilla pod, and mix.
Shape the dough and rest for a good half hour in the fridge. Now butter and flour a 80mmx20mm tartlet tin (chefs.com product code A344)
Roll out the dough between two sheets of parchment paper, lay in the tin and refrigerate again. After 30 minutes, line with cling film (5 sheets thick), and fill with rice.
Bake the pastry case at 150°C for about 10 minutes, then remove rice and cling film, and continue to cook for further 5/10 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Leave to cool.
Now make your crème patisserie. Put the milk in a saucepan, scrape the seeds from the split vanilla pod and add to the milk; bring to the boil.
In a separate bowl mix together the egg yolk and sugar, and when combined add the flour. Again mix until smooth. Pour half the milk into the mixing bowl and whisk until smooth.
Pass this mixture through a fine sieve and return to the remaining milk in the pan over a gentle heat. When the mix comes to the boil, simmer for a few minutes.
Now pour onto a cold tray and refrigerate. When completely cool reserve ¼ of the mix and place in a piping bag. Fold whipped cream into remaining mix, and place the finished crème patisserie in a piping bag. Refrigerate until needed.
For the tuile, blitz the isomalt until fine. Sift onto a baking mat, and place on a baking tray. Sprinkle the seeds over the top, add another baking mat and bake for 8-10mins at 200oC/Gas 6. Remove mat, break into pieces, and set aside.
For the strawberry compote, wash strawberries, cut into quarters, and place in a small saucepan. Add sugar and 2 tablespoons of water. Place on a low heat, cook until thick and jam like in consistency.
For the Macerated strawberries, wash and dry strawberries. Hull, and cut into quarters. Lightly sprinkle with icing sugar and add the lemon zest. Cling film, and leave at room temperature for about 1 hour.
Finally, make your strawberry gel. Combine thoroughly the purée, water and agar. Slowly bring to the boil. Chill, cut into small pieces, then blend until smooth.
To finish, place a small amount of compote in the base of the sable tart. Pipe the crème patisserie (with cream) on top of the compote to create a dome. Fill the rim with dots of strawberry gel, and top with tuile.
Create a pattern on the plate with the crème patisserie (without cream) the strawberry gel, and the macerated strawberries.
