Ingredients

Method

Sable Pastry

In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment on a low speed cream the icing sugar and and butter. Add the egg and mix on medium speed until combines.

Split the vanilla pod and scrape the seeds out of the pod with the back of a knife and add them to the flour. Mix the seeds with the flour, cornflour and salt and then gradually add the flour to the mixture on a low speed.

On a low speed, gradually add the flour mixture until it is just combined then tip the mixture onto a floured board and knead by hand gently not to overwork the dough. The dough should be soft and resemble cookie dough.

Place dough on a piece of parchment paper and place another sheet on top and roll the dough into a disk about 2-3cm thick and place the dough in the fridge for 60-90 minutes or overnight.

Preheat the oven to 175ºC / 160ºC Fan or 350ºF / 325ºF Fan

Remove the pastry from the fridge and keeping the dough in the baking paper, roll out the dough until it is 5-7cm larger than the base of your tart tin and if the pastry is still cold remove the top layer of baking paper and invert the dough very carefully into the tart tin. If the dough has warmed up a little, place it back in the fridge to chill some more before filling the tart tin.

Once you have filled the tart tin , cut off any excess pastry that is hanging over the edge of the tart tin with a sharp knife and place the tart in the freezer for about 15-20 minutes.

Remove the tart from the freezer and bake for about 20-25 minutes in the centre of the oven or until golden brown.

Allow the tart case to cool completely.

Preserve Layer

For this layer you can make your own preserve or use a jar of good quality preserve. Place the preserve in a bowl with the rum and whisk it vigorously to loosen it. Put to one side.

Pastry Cream

In a large heavy based saucepan place the milk, cream and half of the sugar and bring to a boil stirring constantly so it doesn't burn on the bottom of the pan.

In a separate bowl add the sugar and egg yolks and whisk immediately so the sugar doesn't burn the egg yolks. Stir in the cornstarch and the seeds from half a vanilla pod.

Take a cup of the milk and cream mixture and slowly add to the egg mixture whisking constantly so as not to scramble the egg mixture. Add the rest of the milk and cream mixture and mix thoroughly.

Pour the mixture back into a clean saucepan and heat on a low to medium heat, stirring constantly until the bubbles subside and the pastry cream thickens. This should take about 3 minutes but continue to cook for a further 2-3 minutes to cook out the taste of the cornflour. The mixture will continue to thicken as it cools.

Allow to cool slightly then add the butter a cube at a time until all incorporated then strain through a sieve. It should be smooth and glossy. Cover with clingfilm directly on the cream to prevent a skin and chill in the fridge.

Strawberry Decoration

Wash the strawberries, dry them and then separate them into small, medium and large. Remove the stalks and halve the strawberries lengthways.

Assembling The Strawberry Tart

Remove the pastry cream from the fridge and either put in in a piping bag. Place the strawberry preserve in a piping bag too.

In the base of the tart place a layer of strawberry preserve. If you don't want to pipe this you can use an angled palette knife to smooth the preserve over the base of the tart.

Next pipe a layer of pastry cream on top of the preserve, evenly covering the whole of the tart.

Next using the larger halves of strawberry first lay the halves in a circle around the outside edge of the tart sides slightly overhanging. Then place a second row inside the first row sitting slightly against the first row. If you run out of large halves move onto the medium halves and continue the rings of strawberries until you have filled the tart ring.

It should resemble the fully open petals of a flower.

Warm the apricot jam with a tablespoon of water in a small pan or the microwave and very gently brush the strawberries facing up with the apricot glaze.

You now have your beautiful Strawberry Tart to wow your guests.