Fruit Tart

Martha, Martha, Martha!  I truly am a Martha Stewart fan!! Through her ups and downs she truly is someone I admire (I know but it's true).  She gets alot of flack but she knows what she is talking about!

Several years ago I stood in a long line for hours in the cold waiting for her to sign my cookbook that I paid full price for ($45) knowing I could get it at Sam's for $30!  As we stood in the Sur la Table parking I got to know the people around me a bit since we were there soooooo long!

We finally made it  inside where we could get a glimpse of her signing away!  In front of me was a Father who took off work to come with his 20 something daughter.  After he goes through the line he comes over to us and says he took a cookie Martha had sitting by her on a cake stand and as he was putting it in his mouth she said "I didn't make those they are kinda dry"!!  lol  It was a recipe from her cookie cookbook she was promoting but she said they must have done something wrong!  I'm surprised she didn't have them removed!

This recipe below comes from Martha!  I had someone ask if I could make a fruit tart  for them so I said sure!  Started looking for a recipe and found this!  Crust is a buttery shortbread then has a vanilla pastry cream topped off with fruit!  I have gotten this at La Madeleine's several times.

I love fruit, I love vanilla pastry cream and I love a buttery shortbread crust!

                                   Fruit Tart

Crust

¾ cup butter, melted

½ cup powder sugar

1 ½ cup all purpose flour

Mix butter, sugar and flour together then press into a ungreased 11 in tart pan or a 12-in pizza pan with sides.  Bake at 200 for 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned.  Cool on wire rack.

Pastry Cream

• 1 cup whole milk
• 1/2 vanilla bean, split or 2 tsp pure vanilla
• 5 tablespoons sugar
• 3 large egg yolks
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon flour (preferably rice flour for lightness)
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Fruit for topping- Strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, kiwi, raspberries

• 1/4 cup red currant jelly, seedless raspberry jam, quince jelly, or apricot jam

Directions

1. Place milk, vanilla bean, and 1/4 cup sugar in a medium saucepan over high heat; cook until almost boiling.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together egg yolks with remaining 1 tablespoon sugar until thickened. Sprinkle in cornstarch and flour and continue beating until well combined.
3. Remove vanilla bean from milk. While whisking constantly, slowly pour heated-milk mixture into egg-yolk mixture. Pour mixture through a fine sieve back into saucepan, and cook, whisking constantly, over medium-high heat, until it thickens and registers 160 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, about 2 minutes.
4. Transfer to a large bowl and whisk in butter until melted. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly on the surface of the pastry cream; refrigerate until completely cooled

5.    Place jelly or jam in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring, until melted and smooth. Set glaze aside to cool slightly.

6.    Spoon pastry cream mixture into cooled tart shell and spread evenly with an offset spatula. Top with berries; brush berries with glaze. Tart is best served the day it is made.