Fruit tart (My Birthday Cake!)

Prepare the shortcrust pastry

1. Take a large bowl and combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Add the diced butter and "crumble" the butter into the flour using your fingerprints. Add the egg, grated lemon zest, and water, work them using a pastry blender or fork.

   

2. Once the mix starts to look like a dough, transfer it onto a large board and lightly knead the mixture with your hands in order to obtain a single mass, dusting with flour if needed.

   

3. The dough is ready when it does not stick on your hands. Wrap it with cling film and chill in the fridge for at least 60 minutes.

   

Prepare the cream

1. Pour the milk in a saucepan. Add the vanilla seeds from the pod (cut the pod in half and scrape the seeds out using a knife) and the peel of half lemon. Place it on the hob and heat it (do not boil). In the meantime, mix the eggs, cornflour, and sugar in a bowl, using a whisk. When the milk is hot, remove the saucepan from the hob, remove the lemon peel, and slowly add the egg mixture. Combine well with a whisk.

   

2. Place the saucepan back on the hob and bring to the boil. Whisk continuously until the sauce starts thickening. Add a few drops of food colour gel and combine well. Cover the saucepan with cling film (even if it is still hot) and set aside.

   

Bake the crust and assemble the tart

1. Preheat oven at 180C.

2. Coat your cake tin with butter and dust with flour. Remove the dough from the fridge and roll the dough into a circle (4-5mm high), wide enough to cover the cake pan. Use your fingerprints to seal the dough on the sides and cut out any excess dough. Prick the bottom with a fork.

   

3. Cover the dough with baking parchment and fill with baking beans (or real dry beans). Bake for 25 minutes. Let it cool completely before removing it from the cake tin.

   

4. Spread the cream into cooled crust (use as much as needed).

   

5. Garnish with fresh fruit and a few leaves of mint.