Petit four fruit tartlets

If you are looking for a lighter dessert, you should try these vanilla custard filled tartlets. They are not too sweet, and the fruit and berries give them a fresh touch. 

 I think I have to make these again for an afternoon tea party that we are planning to have with a few of my college friends. So there is more afternoon tea bits coming later...

If you want a proper vanilla flavoured custard, I recommend making it yourself. The ready mixed ones don't have enough vanilla flavour in them, and they taste a bit, well, cheap. Making the custard is easy and quick anyway, and I think it is nice to make everything from scratch -  it is all your work then!

Also you can get creative with the decoration by choosing the fruit and berries you like. I think using dark and light coloured fruits together gives a nice contrast, which makes the tartlets look more interesting and the other colours pop! I made these in a muffin pan, but you could use individual cases too. This dough makes about 12 tartlets.

Shortcrust pastry

150 g cold butter

4 dl flour

1/2 dl powdered sugar

1 egg

1/2 tbsp cold water

Put the flour on a working surface, and cut the butter into small cubes on the flour. This helps the butter not to stick too much to your knife, and it keeps the butter more cold as well.

Put the flour+diced butter in a mixing bowl, add the sugar.

Pinch the butter with the flour and sugar, do not over work, as the butter will get too soft, and it will be difficult to work later. So try to work fast.

Add the egg and water and work together quickly until the dough has just combined. Do not knead - you want a nice and crumbly pastry. Wrap the dough in plastic and let it rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

Vanilla custard

100 g caster sugar

100 g corn flour

2 tsp vanilla extract (the proper stuff)

4 eggs

2 egg yolks

600 ml milk

600 ml whipping cream

Put the caster sugar, cornflour and vanilla into a mixing bowl and add the eggs and egg yolks. Whisk with a hand whisk until smooth and blended.

Pour the milk and whipping cream into a pan and heat gently until hot, but do not boil. Pour this over the egg mixture and immediately whisk until blended. 

Wash the pan to remove any excess from the milk and pour the custard back into the clean pan. Heat gently, stirring constantly until thickened. Don't panic if the custard starts to look lumpy as it thickens, just continue to heat and whisk until the custard is thick and smooth. 

Pour into a jug and cover the surface of the custard with cling film to prevent a skin from forming. Set aside to cool.

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Preheat the oven to 175C. Now while the custard is cooling down, roll out the shortcrust pastry for about 4mm thick on a floured surface. 

If you are using a muffin pan, put the pan upside down on the pastry, and cut the pastry around the tin. Roll the cut out pastry around the rolling pin (easier to lift up without it breaking into pieces), and lay the sheet of pastry on the tin, add press the dough down into the individual cups. Use a piece of dough to press, your fingers tend to be too warm and might brake the dough. Cut the excess dough away so that each cup is covered with the dough.

Cut pieces off baking parchment for each cup, press them gently to the cups and fill with baking beans. 

Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes or until golden brown. The bottoms should not be soggy or too pale.

Remove the beans and baking parchment and let them cool down completely. Fill each pastry cup with vanilla custard and top with fruit and berries.

If you want to glaze the fruit, boil a few tablespoons of apricot jam and a little water until the jam is smooth. Brush over the fruit.