Strawberry Custard Tart

Custard for the filling :

100 ml full fat milk
100 ml cream
3 egg yolks
60 g caster sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 and 1/2 tablespoon cornflour

200 gms of strawberries, cut into halves and tossed in a bowl with a tablespoon of icing sugar.

Heat the milk and cream over low heat in a sauce pan for 8 to 10 minutes, making sure it does not reach a boiling point. 

Whisk the egg yolks, corn flour, vanilla extract and sugar in a bowl.

Now take the sauce pan off the heat and add the milk to the bowl of egg mixture. 

Whisk for a minute then pour everything back into the sauce pan over low heat, keep stirring for 4 to 5 minutes or till it reaches a smooth and thicker consistency.

Now take the custard off the heat and let it cool down.

For the pastry : The dough can be made by hand or a food processor. To bake you will need a 6 to 7 inch two-piece fluted tart tin with a removable bottom. 

110 g all purpose flour
60 g unsalted butter (at room temperature)
1 tablespoon icing sugar
A pinch of salt
1 egg 
1 egg white

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C and place the rack at the bottom.

Mix the butter and sugar till it reaches a creamy texture, then whisk in 1 egg.

Add the salt and flour, mix it with a rubber spatula, then place the dough on a flat surface over a piece of cling film. 

Now using both your hands shape the dough into a ball and then flatten it into a round shape, about 15cm. Cover it with sides of the cling film and put it in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Take the dough out and place it over the centre of the tart tin, then using your fingers start evenly patting the dough all over the tin, then with a skewer or a fork gently prick the dough all over a few times.

Bake the crust for 7 minutes, then turn the temperature down to 180 degrees C and bake for another 15 minutes.

Whisk the egg white, and brush it lightly all over the warm pastry with an egg brush, due to the heat the egg white will set fast and this will ensure that when you add the wet filling to the pastry, it will not get soggy. 

Let the pastry is cooled down. 

When about to serve, place the tart tin over a jar or an upside down bowl, the removable side of the tin will come off. Put the pastry on a serving plate, fill it evenly with the custard, and decorate with the strawberries. Cut into slices to serve, you should get 4 to 6 slices out of it.

NOTE : You can put many other sweet fillings into this pastry like lemon curd, chocolate pudding or other fruits and berries.