Nothing says 'hello spring' like the combination of strawberries and rhubarb in a rustic, yet classic, dessert. Sweet scrumptious strawberries and tart sour rhubarb are combined with a touch of lemon and a crumbly pecan oat topping to create a balanced and vibrant springtime dessert. The contrast between the soft juicy fruit, the buttery crust, and the crunchy pecan oat topping is pure perfection.
Makes 8 (4-inch) tartlets
Ingredients
Tart Crust
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp granulated sugar
½ tsp salt
½ cup unsalted butter, cold and grated
1 large egg yolk
2-5 Tbsp ice cold water
Strawberry Rhubarb Filling
10 oz rhubarb, chopped
1 lb strawberries, halved
2 Tbsp cornstarch
½ cup granulated sugar
1 tsp lemon zest
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
Pecan Oat Crumble
⅓ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup old fashioned oats
½ cup light brown sugar, packed
⅛ tsp salt
¼ cup unsalted butter, cold and cubed
⅓ cup pecans, chopped
Directions
Tart Crust
Preheat oven to 400°F.
Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Add the grated butter and stir to combine.
In a small bowl, lightly beat the egg yolk with 2 tablespoons ice water until combined.
Slowly stir the egg mixture into the dough mixture and knead into a ball. If the dough is too dry, add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time.
Shape the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic, and place in the refrigerator for an hour to chill until firm.
After an hour, remove the dough from the refrigerator and cut in half. Place half back in the fridge while you work with the other half. Roll the dough out to ⅛-inch thickness.
Cut the dough into circles about one inch wider than your tartlet pans. Press the dough into the pans and remove any excess dough with a knife. As soon as you finish forming a tartlet shell, place it in the refrigerator to chill.
Take the dough scraps and form into a ball. Wrap the ball in plastic wrap and place back into the fridge while you work with the ball of chilled dough. (The dough should always be chilled to prevent the butter from melting.) Roll out the ball of dough to ⅛-inch thickness, and repeat the steps for cutting out the tartlet circles. Take the ball of dough scraps out of the refrigerator and add any remaining dough scraps to the ball. Repeat these same steps for creating the tartlet shells with the remaining dough.
Once you are ready to bake, remove the tartlets from the refrigerator. Line each tartlet with parchment paper and fill with ceramic baking weights. Place the tartlets on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes.
Strawberry Rhubarb Filling
Combine the rhubarb, strawberries, corn starch, sugar, lemon zest, and juice in a large bowl. Set aside until you are ready to assemble the tartlets.
Pecan Oat Crumble
Combine the flour, oats, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Add the butter and work together with your fingers until the mixture resembles a course crumble. Add the pecans and stir to combine. Place the crumb topping in the refrigerator to chill.
Tartlet Assembly
Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F.
Remove the tartlet shells from the oven and evenly spoon the strawberry rhubarb filling into each hot shell. Use your fingers to add the crumb on top of the filling. Place the tartlets on a baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes.
Remove the tartlets from the oven and let cool completely. Remove the tartlets from their shells and serve.