A fabulous tart made with fresh fruit and pastry cream is one of the first things I think of when I imagine a pâtisserie in France.

{pâtisserie: French pastry shop or bakery}

There is just something about that rich, vanilla custard coupled with the sweetness and tang from the fresh fruits that pushes this beautiful dessert over the edge for me. Whether in Europe or here in the US, these tarts are widely available. And whenever I see one sitting in one of those shiny display cases, I have a hard time passing it up. I find that they typically don’t vary much in quality, and by making one myself, I discovered it’s probably because this classic French dessert is so surprisingly simple to execute.

Tart shell, pastry cream, fresh fruit. Simple enough, right? The only tricky area here is – as always – the tart shell. I have had many issues with tart shells, and I think most people who’ve taken to making tarts often will agree. From shrunken walls to burnt ones, there are many ways in which the crust can go wrong. I made the mistake of using the tart recipe from the original below, but I wouldn’t recommend it to you. Sorry, Ina! Instead, I included a link to Smitten Kitchen’s recipe for Deb’s “great unshrinkable tart shell” – which is, pretty much, the discovery of a lifetime.

I have to laugh at myself sometimes because I when I first saw where this tart shell was headed, I was so dramatic. This tart sucks! It’s going right in the garbage! And, of course, it was Daniel who told me that it would be fine, it always is – and I better not throw that tart away because he had already made plans to eat it.

Well, wouldn’t you know it: Daniel was right. The tart, though with its imperfect crust, was still perfectly beautiful – and most importantly, it tasted just as I remembered.

Fresh Fruit Tart

Adapted from Ina Garten, via Oprah.com

• 1 baked Sweet Tart Shell, recipe here or use your own
• 3 extra-large egg yolks, at room temperature
• 6 tablespoons sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla
• 1 tablespoon heavy cream
• 1/2 teaspoon cognac or brandy
• Fresh fruits of your choice {I used 4 kiwis, a handful of raspberries, and a few blueberries}

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat egg yolks and sugar on medium-high speed about 3 minutes, until mixture is light yellow and falls back into bowl in a ribbon. On low speed, beat in cornstarch.

In a large saucepan, bring milk to a simmer. Slowly pour milk into egg mixture, whisking steadily, then pour back into saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a whisk or wooden spoon until mixture is thick, about 4 minutes. Bring to a boil and cook on low heat 2 to 3 more minutes. (Taste to be sure cornstarch is cooked.) Remove from heat; mix in butter, vanilla, cream and cognac.

Pour custard through a strainer into a bowl. Place plastic wrap directly onto custard and refrigerate until cold. While custard is cooling, prep your fruit. Smaller berries can be left whole; larger fruits like kiwi should be sliced.

Place baked tart shell on a serving plate and spread cooled pastry cream over bottom of shell. Place fruit on top of custard in any pattern you desire, and serve.

Note:  Traditionally, a fruit tart may be glazed with some type of fruit preserve at the end. If you want to go this route, simply melt your jam/jelly in a small saucepan over low heat and brush it over the fruit at the end. Apricot is common, though I might like to try a blackberry if I were to do it.