Wealden Times | WT184 | June 2017 | Kitchen & Bathroom supplement inside

Food
Seasonal
fruitfulness
Push all the other fruits out of the bowl – the
season of luscious, locally grown summer berries is
here. Bursting with flavour and immune-boosting
micronutrients, homegrown berries are delicious eaten
straight from the bush, or used as versatile and easy
additions to recipes. Our soft fruit season is short, but
very sweet. Let’s make the most of them.
Recipes: Jo Arnell Photographs: David Merewether
Strawberry and lavender tart
This is a very easy tart to put together - and to make it even easier
you could use ready made sweet pastry. Strawberries, lavender and
lemon are fresh and fragrant tart toppings and make a perfect early
summer combo.
Serves 6-8 Prep time: 1 hour (inc. cooling) Cooking time: 20 mins
For the shortbread pastry case:
• 200g plain flour
• 150g cold butter, cut
into small cubes
• 1 egg yolk
• 75g ground almonds
• 50g caster sugar
For the filling:
• 200ml double cream
• 220ml mascarpone
• zest and juice of
half a lemon
• 2-3 tablespoons of
lavender sugar (more or
less, depending on taste)
• 250g strawberries
(whole small ones,
or sliced big ones)
1. To make the pastry combine the flour and butter together
(by hand or with a food processor) until they resemble
crumble topping. Mix in the egg, sugar and almonds
and push together to make a ball (you may need a little
extra water too). Place in the fridge for 30mins, then roll
(or press) into a flan dish (easier said than done, as it is
crumbly and might not hold together). Bake in the oven
at 180˚C (gas 4) for 20 minutes. Cool thoroughly.
2. Beat the cream into the mascarpone (until it forms soft
peaks), then mix in lemon juice and 1-2 tablespoons of
lavender sugar (taste for sweetness). Add the cream mixture
to the pastry case just prior to serving. Top with strawberries,
a sprinkling of lemon zest and more lavender sugar.
137 wealdentimes.co.uk