Strawberry Tartlets |Cooking With Amanda

Does anyone else get giddy when the spring produce starts hitting the grocery stores? It's definitely when I tend to start over-buying. I just grab anything and everything that looks good, and worry what I'm going to do with it later.

Sometimes this leads to a sad, unremembered leek, or a bag of morels languishing in the back of my fridge, but no matter what, the strawberries are never forgotten. Actually, I have to overbuy when it comes to strawberries, because I know that half of them will end up in my mouth way before I can use them in any recipes.

When my strawberries do make it into a recipe, it better be good! This one is perfect because the strawberries in it are barely cooked---allowing the gorgeous freshness to shine.

The strawberries are combined with lemon zest in these, just to up the brightness, then the mashed berries are spooned into buttery, not-overly-sweet tartlet shells.

Oh AND! These are baby tarts! Why is food so much better in miniature version?! It's like the cuteness of it somehow vastly improves the flavor. Annnnd I guess it doesn't hurt that you can have your own personal tartlet to savor and drool over, instead of just a slice :D

But guys, we have to talk about that little dollop of cream on top. It may not look like much, but it totally makes these tartlets! And guess what? It's actually sour cream!

Wait---I know that sounds kind if weird, but just trust me here! It's mixed with a bit of dark brown sugar and real vanilla bean leaving you with the most incredible, slightly tangy, sweet, and perfumed deliciousness! I want to put it on everything, ever.

If you wanted, you could make up a big ol' bowl of it, and serve it with fruits for dipping! It would be the star of any party, that's for sure.

But on these tarts? It's magical.

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Strawberry Tartlets Recipe

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Ingredients

For the Tart Shells:

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

For the Strawberry Filling:

1 cup mashed strawberries, washed and hulled
1/4 cup granulated sugar, plus 2 tablespoons
zest of one lemon
2 teaspoons cornstarch

For the Vanilla Cream Topping:

1/4 cup sour cream, full fat
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar, packed
1/2 vanilla bean, seeds scraped out
small strawberries, for garnish, optional

Directions

For the Tart Shells:

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar for about 5 minutes. Add in the egg and vanilla and mix until incorporated. Add in the flour and salt on low speed and mix until just incorporated.
Scrape the dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a disk. Wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight.
Flour work surface and roll out your dough to 1/4" thick. Press the dough into the bottom and up the sides four 4″ tartlet pans. Place in the freezer for 10-15 minutes, or in the fridge for an hour.
When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F. Line your crust-filled tart shell(s) with tin foil, and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and weights from the tarts and bake for about 10 minutes more, or until the tart shells are golden. Let cool on a wire rack before filling.

For the Strawberry Filling:

In a small saucepan, combine all of the ingredients, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
Continue to cook for about 5 minutes, until thickened.
Allow to cool for 5 minutes, then divide into the four tartlet shells. Place in the fridge to chill.

For the Vanilla Cream Topping:

In a small bowl, stir together the sour cream, brown sugar, and vanilla, until smooth.
Dollop onto the chilled tarts, and top with a mini strawberry.
Serve!