Thursday, May 05, 2005

Biggest Disappointment Ever - Strawberry Tart -


Strawberry Tart

Yes, the strawberries were so tart…! It was unbelievable because they looked so ripe and beautiful in the pack, and they were quite expensive, too.

Being inspired by the strawberry waffle cone ice cream I bought the other day, I decided to make a dessert myself using plenty of strawberries before the end of this holiday week. I wanted it to be special, so I chose the expensive strawberries. Imagine how furious I was when I tasted one and found it sour!


Another disappointment was the custard cream. It was baked in the shell, and when cooled, its texture turned out to be like rubber. Did I put too much flour? I only used the required amount, but yes, I did use all-purpose when the recipe called for cake flour...
The whipped cream didn’t really help much.




What helped the most was probably the photo-retouch software I downloaded today. It compensates for the limited functions of my very old-fashioned digital camera and makes my food photos look much better. These 2 photos were originally much darker, but some retouches gave them a better look.

My conclusion: it must have been much easier and tastier if I simply ate those strawberries with loads of condensed milk :(

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

how come!??? 

Posted by chika

Anonymous said...

Whats wrong??? This look pretty scrumptious 

Posted by keona

Anonymous said...

Whaaaa??? The tart looks so good... Are the strawberries too tart.....? 

Posted by carlyn

Anonymous said...

That looks ridiculously good! Too bad that it didn't taste as good as it looks...:( 

Posted by Robyn

Anonymous said...

Too bad.. Obachan..!! 

Posted by MrsT

Anonymous said...

If you used all purpose flour instead of cake flour it would result in more flour, I would think. Since cake flour is lighter than regular flour? Also, did you mix it too much? I know sometimes I mix batters too much, and it comes out rubbery and tough.  

Posted by Anon

Anonymous said...

That's a real shame, considering how much effort you put into making this tart look so pretty, obachan. 

Posted by Julia

Anonymous said...

That's too bad! It looks so good (amazingly good)! It's so disappointing when that happens, you spend so much time making something so beautiful, and then it doesn't taste good. 

Posted by Amanda

Anonymous said...

i was puzzled bout the title until i read all the captions. the pie really look drool worthy.

hey read your past entries and got a small idea [hope u don't mind i share] instead of just doing soho work when u move back have u thought of opening an inn or opening up your house for tourists to stay...

firstly... ur hometown looks real cool!!! and not just scenic but a great place to unwind
secondly... u can cook pretty well..
so suddenly it strucks me that u could be a great inn keeper!!!! 

Posted by pJ

Anonymous said...

Aww...sorry to hear the tart wasn't very good Obachan. =( But it looks fantastic from the pictures you've taken. 

Posted by Tea

Anonymous said...

> chika --- Well, this is why. Sigh. >
> keona --- It does look nice, thanks to the PhotoFiltre.
> carlyn --- Yep! Definitely!
> Robyn --- I finlly ate it all last night (I sprinkled powder sugar all over before I ate it.)
> MrsT --- Well, better luck next time, right?
> Anon --- Mmmmm… now you say that, maybe I mixed it a bit too much…??? I’ll be careful next time.
> Julia --- Wish me luck for the next time.
> Amanda --- Yeah, it was disappointing. Well, I hope I can post about my successful tart that looks AND tastes good next time.
> pJ --- Thanks so much for your comment! It’s so nice of you to have thought about the possible alternatives for me. I like your idea…except that I hate cleaning house…. Maybe I should make it more like a camping area with a roof rather than an inn. Visitors will have to do the cleaning/washing themselves and they can pay me for meals if they don’t want to cook themselves. Wow! I’d like that :D

> Tea --- Thanks. Next time my tart will look & taste good. I promise ;) 

Posted by obachan

Anonymous said...

that's a better idea !!!!!
^^
if u set up the alternative inn aka camping under the roof do invite me!!! 

Posted by pJ

Anonymous said...

Hi Obachan - I know how you feel... it looks delicious to me nonetheless. 

Posted by keiko

Anonymous said...

> pJ --- Sure!

> keiko --- I bet an excellent baker like you has never made something like this... Oh well, the tart is already gone anyway. Out of sight, out of mind. I'm ready for another crash & burn ;) 

Posted by obachan

Anonymous said...

Hi, Obachan. I think your blog is delightful!

Here is a recipe for perfect pastry cream. I have used it many times with success.
2 cups half-and-half (mixture of milk and cream)
1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) granulated white sugar
A pinch of salt (1/8 tsp.)
5 large egg yolks
3 tablespoons cornstarch
4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Heat the half-and-half, 6 tablespoons of the sugar, and salt in a saucepan until the mixture simmers. Stir occasionally to dissolve sugar.
2. Meanwhile, whisk egg yolks in a bowl until smooth. Whisk in the remaining sugar (2 tablespoons) with the egg yolks. Whisk the mixture for about about 15 seconds. Whisk in the cornstarch and keep whisking for about 30 seconds.
3. When the half-and-half mixture is simmering, gradually add the the hot milk/cream mixture to the egg yolks, only a little at a time. Return the mixture to the pan and simmer until the mixture is thick and shiny, about 30 seconds. Turn off the heat and whisk in the butter and vanilla. If you prefer a smooth pastry cream, strain the mixture through a sieve. Refrigerate the pastry cream for at least 3 hours, until it is cold. You can keep it for two days! Perfect when you are having guests.

This pastry cream is not baked! What I suspect happened to your pastry cream was that it became rubbery when it was baked. The eggs cooked. This pastry cream is simply chilled and placed in the fully-baked pastry crust. Then the fruit is placed on top.
I love to use whatever fruit is in season. We will not have really good strawberries here until June. If you can, try to look for strawberries that are red all the way through. This is a sign that they are flavorful. I think that smaller is better where strawberries are concerned.

I hope you use this recipe. Please post the results!
I can also send a recipe for perfect sweet pastry (pate sucree) for the tart.
If you don't have half-and-half, just mix equal parts milk and cream.
Best of luck, Obachan!
Your fellow baker  

Posted by A Fellow Baker

Anonymous said...

Thanks so much, a fellow baker! :D I promise I’ll try your perfect pastry cream sometime soon and post about it.
Reg. the strawberries, I still feel it was strange that I had a bad luck like this. When I was a kid, many strawberries I saw at the store were garden-grown, and some were not red all the way through. But these days, almost all the strawberries on the shelf at supermarkets around here were grown in greenhouses and they are almost the same size, all red and sweet, as a result of years of breeding. We are so used to that, so it’s still unbelievable that the good-looking, expensive, obviously-grown-in-a-greenhouse strawberries I bought this time tasted that sour. Hmmm.... :( 

Posted by obachan