Kiwi Tart Recipe

Make dough

In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, powdered sugar and salt. Add the cold cubed butter and rub between your fingers or use a pastry cutter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs with some pea-sized pieces of butter remaining.

Stir in the egg yolk, vanilla extract, and 1 tablespoon cold water just until the dough comes together. If dry, add up to 1 more teaspoon water. Do not overwork.

Form the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic, and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

Blind bake

Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Roll the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface to a circle slightly larger than a 9-inch (23 cm) tart pan with removable bottom. Fit the dough into the pan, trim excess and press edges. Prick the bottom lightly with a fork.

Line the shell with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 15 minutes, remove weights and parchment, then bake 8–10 more minutes until edges are golden and base set. Let cool completely in the pan on a rack.

In a medium saucepan, heat the milk over medium heat until it just begins to steam and small bubbles form at the edge; do not boil.

While milk heats, whisk together the sugar, egg yolks and cornstarch in a bowl until pale and smooth.

Temper the eggs: slowly pour about 1/3 of the hot milk into the egg mixture while whisking constantly to raise the temperature. Then pour the tempered egg mixture back into the saucepan with the remaining milk.

Cook over medium-low heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens and comes to a gentle boil (about 2 minutes). Boil for 30 seconds while whisking, then remove from heat.

Whisk in the butter and vanilla extract until smooth. Transfer the pastry cream to a bowl and press plastic wrap directly onto the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Chill at least 1 hour until set.

When the tart shell and pastry cream are cooled and the cream is chilled, spread the pastry cream evenly into the tart shell, smoothing the top with a spatula.

Arrange the kiwi slices over the pastry cream in concentric circles or a pattern of your choice, slightly overlapping slices to cover the surface.

Prepare glaze: in a small saucepan or microwave-safe bowl, warm the apricot jam with 1 teaspoon water until thin and brushable. Strain if desired to remove any fruit bits.

Using a pastry brush, gently brush the warm glaze over the kiwi slices to give a shiny finish and help preserve the fruit.

Chill the assembled tart for at least 30 minutes to set glaze and make slicing cleaner. Garnish with mint leaves just before serving if using.