Strawberry Crumb Tart Recipe

A slice of the Strawberry Crumb Tart on an antique plate with a fork and the tart in the background.

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What could be more inviting than this Strawberry Crumb Tart? Fresh strawberries on top of Nutella along with an unusual shaping technique that requires no tart pan. It's quickly mixed in the processor with an easy assembly.

Prep Time1

Cook Time18

Chilling dough30

Total Time1 48

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Easy Tart to make, Strawberry Tart Recipe, Strawberry Tart,

Servings: servings

Calories: 355kcal

Author: Helen S. Fletcher

Equipment

Food Processor
½ sheet pan
Small bowl with 5 ½ to 6" top diameter

Ingredients

Crumb Topping

¼ cup unsalted butter, cold (58 grams)
3 tablespoons brown sugar (35 grams)
3 tablespoons granulated sugar (35 hgrams)
⅔ cup cake flour (75 grams)
½ teaspoon almond extract

Pastry Dough

2 teaspoons warm water
¾ teaspoon instant yeast
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cup unsalted butter, cold (58 grams)
1 cup all-purpose flour (140 grams)
¼ cup sour cream (58 grams)
3 tablespoons granulated sugar (40 grams)
1 large egg yolk

Assembly

10 2 ½" strawberries *
⅓ to ½ cup Nutella
1 large egg
powdered sugar as needed
*The strawberries need to be the same size. They should be ripe but firm and not overly ripe.

Instructions

Crumb Topping

The butter needs to be cold. Cut it into small cubes.
Place the cake flour, granulated and brown sugars in the bowl of a processor. Process to mix completely.
Add the butter and almond extract. Pulse to form crumbs. Do not over process or it will become a paste. Refrigerate until needed. This can be made a few days ahead and kept covered in the fridge.

Pastry Dough - Despite the fact that this dough has yeast in it, it is never put to rise.

The butter needs to be refrigerator cold. Cut in small cubes. Keep cold.
Combine the water, yeast, and vanilla in a tiny bowl. Stir together and set aside.
Place the flour in the processor and pulse to mix.
Add the cold butter and process until the butter is indistinguishable.
Add the remaining ingredients including the yeast mixture and process until a ball forms. Refrigerate for several hours until cold and firm.
The pastry dough can be made a day or two ahead, wrapped and refrigerated.

Assembly - This should be assembled the day it is served. See below for making it ahead.

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line a half sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.
Remove the dough from the fridge. If it is hard, let it sit for a few minutes until you can roll it. Do not let it get soft - it should remain cold.
Roll the dough into a 10 ½" or 11" round. Center a 10" cake board, plate turned upside down or a lid on the dough. Cut out the 10" round. Transfer to the parchment lined half sheet pan. Place in the fridge while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
Rinse and dry the strawberries. Cut the tops off and then cut them in half top to bottom.
If the following instructions are a bit confusing, please refer to the photos where it will become very clear.
Remove the pastry base from the fridge. Place a 5 ½" to 6" bowl in the center of the pastry. Spread Nutella on the exposed dough to within ¼" of the edge of the circle.
Place the strawberries touching each other with the pointed ends touching the bowl extending to the edge of the Nutella so the entire base is covered.
Crimp the edge of the pastry using your index finger and just pushing it in to meet the Nutella.
Carefully, remove the bowl and cut the exposed pastry into 8 wedges. This is easiest done with a pizza cutter. Cut it in half, then fourths and finally eights.
Pick up one wedge at a time and cover the strawberries with it. Continue around until all 8 wedges are over strawberries.
Beat the egg with a fork until there is no white showing. Brush the pastry and tops of the strawberries with the egg. This will hold the crumbs in place.
Cover the tart with a much or little of the crumbs as desired, pressing them onto the egg wash.
Bake for 18 to 22 minutes or until the pastry is very lightly browned..
To serve, cut between the pastry wedges for one serving.
To Make Ahead: The crumbs and dough can both be made ahead and refrigerated or frozen. If frozen, thaw overnight in the fridge. Prepare through spreading the Nutella on the pastry. Remove the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or freeze for several days. If frozen, thaw in the fridge overnight. Replace the bowl on the pastry. Continue as above in the instructions.

Notes

There is always an abundance of photos to guide you in the post above. If you have questions, look at the photos or read the header of the article. Many of them will be answered there.

As always, I recommend using a scale for accuracy and consistency. Flour, in particular, is difficult to measure by volume. For my recipes, I use 140 grams per cup of unsifted all-purpose, bread or whole wheat flour and 125 grams of cake flour. Others may use different weights so use whatever they suggest.

Unless otherwise noted, salt refers to table salt.

Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.

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Cold is the key with the pastry. If it warms up too much it will be harder to transfer to the parchment paper.

The strawberries should be about 2" long after trimming the tops to cover the Nutella and keep their shape after baking.

After egg washing the completed tart, make sure to press the crumbs in place so they don't fall off during baking. The egg wash will act as a glue.

If there are crumbs left over, store the remainder in the freezer to use on muffins, quick breads, other tarts or coffee cakes.

The almond extract can be changed to vanilla according to your preference.

Don't over bake the tart. . The pastry should just start to color.

Despite the fact there is yeast in the dough, it never rises before using.

Nutrition