Campfire Strawberry Tart

In truth, Windmill Farm’s Albion strawberries require no additional ingredients for the perfect summer treat, but if you’d like to bake with them, this fruit-forward summer dessert evokes the nostalgia of s’mores, combining classic vanilla pastry cream, elegant Swiss meringue marshmallow crème and jammy, roast strawberries.

This dessert is best approached in stages. Complete the crust, pastry cream and berries on day one, assembling the tart once all components are cool. Optimally, refrigerate the tart overnight or for a few hours, then whip up the fluffy marshmallow top, pipe it or spoon it over the tart and toast, if desired.

4 pint baskets strawberries, hulled and sliced in half lengthwise
2 tablespoons sugar
1½ tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1½ teaspoons vanilla
Salt

FOR THE CRUST

1¾ cups finely ground Graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon sea salt
9 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and browned
3 ounces dark chocolate, broken in pieces

FOR THE PASTRY CREAM

2 cups whole milk
½ vanilla bean
¼ teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons cornstarch
½ cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
3 large eggs
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces

FOR THE SWISS MERINGUE MARSHMALLOW CRÈME

4 large egg whites
1 cup sugar
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla

TO PREPARE THE BERRIES

Heat oven to 375° F. Hull and slice berries from 3 of the 4 baskets. Place them in a large mixing bowl and toss with vinegar, vanilla, sugar and salt. Spread marinated berries onto parchment-lined baking sheets and roast for 20 minutes or until deflated and pooling with thickened juices. Once out of the oven, place them in a bowl and allow to cool before chilling in the refrigerator.

Hull and slice berries from the fourth basket, placing them in a small bowl when finished.

TO MAKE THE CRUST

Heat oven to 350° F. Mix Graham cracker crumbs, sugar and salt in a medium bowl and stir until mixed. Drizzle in brown butter and mix to evenly coat crumbs. Press crumbs into the bottom and up the sides of 9½-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. Then bake crust until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. After removing the crust from the oven, scatter pieces of chocolate over the bottom, then wait 30 seconds so that they begin to melt before you slide them across the crust to create an even chocolate shell. Place unroasted strawberries, cut side down, into the melted chocolate, covering as much surface area as possible. Let the crust cool, then cover with foil and place in the freezer.

TO MAKE THE PASTRY CREAM

Place a fine mesh sieve over a medium-sized bowl and place near the stove. In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and sugar. Once well combined, add the eggs and whisk until smooth before setting mixture aside.

Pour the milk into a heavy saucepan, then split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and using the tip of a paring knife, scrape the vanilla seeds from the bean into the milk. Add salt to the milk and place the saucepan over mediumhigh heat, stirring occasionally to ensure that the milk solids don’t adhere to the pan.

When the milk is about to boil, slowly ladle roughly 1/3 of the hot, vanilla-scented milk into the egg, sugar and cornstarch mixture, whisking constantly. Pour the warmed egg mixture back into the hot milk and continue whisking over medium heat until the consistency of lightly whipped cream is achieved. The pastry cream must just come to a boil, then immediately be taken off the heat and poured through the sieve, to prevent overcooking.

Allow the pastry cream to cool for 3-5 minutes, then stir in the butter, taking time to whisk in each piece before adding the next. Let the cream cool so that it is warm rather than hot.

Chill the cream by covering the bowl with plastic wrap or parchment, pressing the food wrap onto the surface of the cream before placing it in the refrigerator.

Once all components are thoroughly chilled, fill the Graham cracker and chocolate shell with the pastry cream, and top with the roasted strawberries. Ideally, refrigerate the tart overnight or for a few hours, then make the marshmallow crème meringue right before serving.

To make the marshmallow crème Place a double boiler on the stove. Once the water is boiling, whisk egg whites, sugar and cream of tartar together until the sugar has dissolved completely and the mixture begins to thin. Remove from heat, add vanilla and transfer to a stand mixer. Whip on high speed until stiff glossy peaks form. If you can hold your bowl of meringue upside-down over your head without the contents plopping into your hair, you’re there.

Pipe or spoon the marshmallow crème over the tart. Use a kitchen torch or 3-5 carefully supervised minutes under the broiler to produce the campfire effect. Serves 8-10.