Strawberry Crème Brûlée Tart

I am so excited to be back in the improve challenge! Due to graduate school I had to take some time away from blogging and the various challenges that I like to participate in, but I am finally back! Graduation is this Sunday so now I will have time to myself once again!

With that being said, this month's improv challenge from Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker was to use strawberries and cream! Now, strawberries and cream on their own are delicious enough! However, I wanted to try and get a little creative with my recipe.  Although it may not be that creative, I decided to make one of my most favorite desserts - Crème Brûlée - and add a strawberry tart twist! Hence, the birth of the Strawberry Crème Brûlée Tart!

Strawberry Crème Brûlée Tart

Ingredients

-1 recipe for Crème Brûlée

-1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

-3 tablespoons sugar

-1/2 teaspoon salt

-6 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, diced

-2 tablespoons cold shortening

-1/4 cup ice water

-Thinly sliced strawberries

-Sugar for sprinkling

Directions:

Prepare the dough. 

Mix the flour, sugar, and salt together in a bowl and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.  Then, add the butter and shortening and mix until the butter pieces are the size of peas and the dough is crumbly.  Slowly add the 1/4 cup of ice water and mix the dough until it comes together to form a ball (you may use a little less or slightly more water, but just be sure to add a little at a time so you do not add too much). Turn the dough out on a floured surface and flatten into a round disk.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. 

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F while the dough is chilling.  Once ready, roll the dough out and place in a tart pan.  I used one large tart pan, but in the future I want to make individual ones so that I can have more custard in the tart.  

Once the dough is in the tart pan, take a piece of tinfoil and grease one side of it.  Place the greased side of the tinfoil over the dough and weigh it down with pie weights or beans (this holds the dough in place so that it won't shrink and will hold its form).  Bake for 20 minutes or until just barely a light golden brown. Remove from the oven, take out the pie weights, and let cool. 

While the dough is cooling, change the oven temperature to 300 degrees F, and prepare the crème brûlée recipe.  Take the thinly sliced strawberries and place them on the pie dough (you could also use strawberry preserves if you want).  Then, pour the crème brûlée mixture over the strawberries in the pie crust.  Place in the oven and bake for 40 minutes or until set.  The tart may jiggle a little in the center but that is okay. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.  Once cooled, wrap and chill in the fridge for at least a couple of hours or overnight.  When ready to serve, sprinkle the top of the tart with sugar and use a kitchen torch or broil to melt the sugar and create the crème brûlée crust. 

Serve with whipped cream, fresh strawberries, or just dive right into it as is.  No matter how you eat it, just enjoy! 

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