Warm strawberry tart with lime cream

It is this time of year again, when strawberries are abundant and tasty. The best ones are of course are  those ones you pick yourself, if however you are a supermarket fanatic, do buy them fresh and do not keep them for more than a day in your fridge. Strawberries’ fragrant juiciness and colour make them an attractive end to a meal.

This recipe which which featured in last week's cooking workshop, calls for baked strawberries. This enhances their flavour. You lose a little in colour but you can compensate but using liberal amounts of glaze made from the syrupy juices of the fruit itself. It is delicious  love to serve it warm with lime cream.

Warm strawberry tart

1.200 kg strawberries, washed and hulled

200 g sugar

100 g ground almonds

100 g butter

400 g puff pastry

For the lime cream:

200 ml double cream

1 egg

200ml lime juice

Grated rind of 3 limes

80 g sugar

½ gelatine sheet

1 tablespoon mascarpone

1. Place the strawberries on the metal grill and over an oven tray to collect the juices.
2. Sprinkle with sugar. Pre-heat the oven to 100⁰C and roast the strawberries for 1 hour. Remove from the grill and allow the strawberries to cool before using. Collect the juices from the pan and transfer to a saucepan. Bring to a boil and reduce until it the syrup thickens.
3. Soak gelatine in water.
4. Now make the lime cream. Whisk egg and sugar until creamy and light. Add grated lime rind and lime juice. Transfer to a pan. Cook over medium heat stirring all the while. When the mixture starts to bubble remove from the heat. Allow to cool before using.
5. Add gelatine.
6. Whisk cream, mascarpone and sugar together until medium firm.
7. Blend together, cream and egg and lime mixture.
8. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
9. Pre-heat the oven to 180⁰C
10. Now make the almond cream. Mix ground butter and eggs together until soft and amalgamated. Add sugar and mix. Finally add ground almonds and flavour with either vanilla or a tablespoon of brandy. The cream can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.
11. Roll out the puff pastry to 2/3 mm thick. Line a 28 cm tart tin with the rolled pastry.  Taper the edges with your fingers taper and prick the base with a fork to prevent it from puffing up.
12. Spread almond cream onto the base of the puff pastry. Bake in the hot oven for 30 minutes or when the surface becomes brown.
13. Arrange the strawberries on top.
14. Replace in the oven for 10 minutes.
15. Brush the top of the tart with the strawberry syrup.
16. Serve warm with lime cream.