Serves 8
The pastry is a delicious sweet French tart dough, which comes together nicely, from Dorie Greenspan’s book “Baking: From My Home to Yours.” Roll it out on parchment paper, then slide the paper onto a baking sheet.
PASTRY
| 1½ | cups flour |
| ½ | cup confectioners’ sugar |
| ¼ | teaspoon salt |
| 9 | tablespoons butter, cut up and very cold |
| 1 | egg yolk |
| Extra flour (for sprinkling) |
1. In a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Pulse to blend them. Scatter the butter on top and pulse until the butter resembles pieces the size of peas.
2. Stir the yolk to break it up. Sprinkle it onto the flour mixture, then pulse it in 10-second bursts until the dough forms clumps (it should not come together). Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter and knead the mixture lightly until it forms a dough. Shape into a flat cake, wrap in foil, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
3. Set the oven at 375 degrees. Have on hand a rimless baking sheet.
4. Set the dough on a 12-inch sheet of parchment paper. Roll it with a floured pin, turning the paper often, until it is 9 inches. Crimp the edges. Prick well all over. With a large chef’s knife, cut the dough into quarters, then cut each quarter in half to make 8 triangles, leaving them together in the round. Slide the parchment onto the baking sheet.
5. Bake the pastry on the bottom shelf of the oven for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and cut the triangles again, all the way through, still leaving them together in a round. Continue baking on the middle shelf of the oven for 10 minutes or until the pastry is firm and golden brown. (Total baking time is 25 minutes.) Remove from the oven and set on a rack to cool.
6. Transfer the round to a cake platter, separating the triangles slightly.
FILLING
| 4 | ounces mascarpone |
| Pinch of salt | |
| 1 | cup heavy cream |
| 2 | tablespoons confectioners’ sugar |
| ½ | teaspoon vanilla extract |
| 1 | quart strawberries, hulled and halved or quartered |
| Grated rind and juice of ½ orange |
|
| Extra confectioners’ sugar |
1. In a large bowl, whisk the mascarpone with the salt.
2. In an electric mixer, beat the cream, sugar, and vanilla until the cream holds soft peaks. Fold the whipped cream into the mascarpone in 3 additions.
3. In another bowl, toss the berries, orange rind, and juice.
4. Top the pastry with the mascarpone mixture. Add the berries and sprinkle with more confectioners’ sugar. Ashley Pardo.
Pastry adapted from “Baking: From My Home to Yours.”