Anatomy of a Fruit Tart - Vodka Crust and Foolproof Custard

Someone gave me a copy of the April issue of Food Magazine.  I browsed through the pages and made a mental note.  I'll try to make the vodka crust and the foolproof custard with my kids.  Five months later I did. So how did I fare in this experiment? The crust is a little salty (probably because I used salted butter) but the custard's sweetness is just right. R had a great time doing this.  Definitely kid-approved. 

Food's April Issue

VODKA CRUST

Ingredients:

1/4 cup vodka
1/4 cup water
2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
2 tablespoons sugar

1 1/4 cups cold butter, cut into half inch cubes

Procedure:

1. Combine vodka and water and put in the freezer.
2. In a bowl, mix 1 1/2 cups flour, salt and sugar. With a pastry blender, cut in the butter into grain-sized pieces. When mixture get a little pasty, add the remaining 1 cup flour.
3. Take the vodka water out of the freezer and sprinkle on the flour butter mixture. Use a rubber scraper to press and mix until it comes together to form a dough.
4. Divide the dough in half, pat each disc, cover with plastic wrap or store in a plastic bag in the refrigerator until ready to use. Let the pie dough rest at least an hour before rolling out; this makes it easier to handle.

FRUIT TART

Ingredients:

1 batch vodka crust
foolproof custard
fruit preserves like strawberry
or fresh fruits like mango, blueberry, strawberry, kiwi

Procedure:

1. Remove the vodka dough from the refrigerator. Roll out the dough using a six inch round pan, cut out discs from the dough. Fit the discs into 4 inch tart shells and bake in a preheated 400 degree Fahrenheit oven for 20 minutes. Cool the tart shells.

2.  Just before serving, spoon or pipe the foolproof custard into each of the tarts. Top with fruit preserves or fresh fruits.

FOOLPROOF CUSTARD

Ingredients:

2 cups milk
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
6 egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons butter

Procedure:

1. Put milk in a saucepan and heat up to almost a boil. You can tell by watching out for the bubbles that form by the side of the pan.
2. Combine sugar, cornstarch, egg yolks, vanilla extract and butter, and whisk until very smooth.
3. When milk is ready, pour into the egg yolk mixture and whisk quickly to combine. Return to heat and cook, stirring all the while until a bubble forms on the surface and custard is thick. Use a whisk to mix if there are any lumps.
4. cover the custard with plastic wrap, pressing the plastic directly on the surface. This prevents the custard from forming a skin as it cools. Store in the refrigerator when cool.

Food Magazine also had a nice suggestion:

Buttery and flaky tart shells, silky smooth pastry cream, fresh fruits and a selection of jams are components of a fun interactive make-your-own dessert activity that you can get your guests to join in. lay out all the ingredients on the table, stact the tart shells on one side and ask them to make up their own combinations.

Happy baking!