Fresh Strawberry Tart

For Chef John's summer-y dessert, make your own crust or use a prepared one — you can use a tart pan instead of going free-form. But be sure to use perfectly ripe, sweet strawberries.

• Preparation Time: 20 mins
• Cooking Time: 20 mins
• Total Time: 40 mins
• Calories: 320 Calories

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 2 teaspoons water
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, room temperature
• 2 tablespoons creme fraiche
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 (8 ounce) ball sweet pastry dough
• 1 pound fresh ripe strawberries, hulled, halved
• 0.25 teaspoon salt
• 0.25 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 0.5 teaspoon grated lemon zest
• 0.25 cup apricot jam

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Step 2

Place pastry dough on a lightly floured work surface. Roll out dough to a round disk about 1/8-inch thick and 12 inches in diameter. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet.

Step 3

Brush outside 2 inches around the edges of circle lightly with water. Tightly curl up a bit of the edge of dough to give it a rounder shape with a slightly thickened edge. If some edges are thicker than others, pinch off excess and add to thinner edges forming a circle with even edges. Roll each edge again just once to make the edges thick enough to crimp. Crimp crust with your floured fingers.

Step 4

Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool about 10 minutes. Do not turn off the oven.

Step 5

Place cream cheese, crème fraîche, sugar, egg yolk, salt, vanilla, and lemon zest in a mixing bowl. Mix together thoroughly. Carefully pour a thin layer of mixture evenly into pastry shell (you may not need all the cheese mixture).

Step 6

Transfer filled tart to the oven. Bake until cheese layer is set and crust is browned, about 20 minutes. Let tart cool completely to room temperature before adding berries.

Step 7

Arrange berries cut side down, pointy end out starting with the larger berries around the edges. You can lean strawberries up a bit as your work your way toward the center. Cut some berry halves in half again to fit into any gaps on cheese layer.

Step 8

Place apricot jam and 2 teaspoons water in a saucepan. Heat over low heat until thin enough to brush. Let cool slightly before brushing generously over all berries and crust. Transfer tart to a serving plate.

Step 9

Use a fork to "dock" dough's bottom surface, covering it with tiny holes to prevent dough from bubbling up as it bakes.