Strawberries & cream slice
Taste the exquisite fusion of cream and strawberries on a shortbread crust. Enjoy this dessert with friends as a delicious al fresco afternoon tea.
Ingredients for strawberry and cream slice:
- 375 milliliters of double cream
- Two teaspoons of vanilla bean paste
- Four egg yolks (save the whites aside for another use)
- 90 grams of golden caster sugar
- 20g cornmeal
- fifteen grams of plain flour
- One sheet of gelatin
- 500g of hulled and finely cut strawberries
- Three tablespoons of warmed, sieved strawberry jam (optional)
- 170g butter without salt
- 75 grams of golden caster sugar
- 200g each of ordinary and
- cornflour
Make the base first.
- Grease a 20 x 20cm square pan with baking parchment, leaving excess hanging over the sides, and preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Using an electric mixer, beat the sugar and butter until creamy.
- To produce a dough, sift in the flour and cornflour and whisk. As you press, make sure the tin is level.
- Use a fork to make holes all over, then bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until firm and slightly golden. Let cool fully within the tin.
- In the meantime, place the cream and vanilla in a pot and simmer it gently. Heat until steam begins to form. To make a thick paste, combine the egg yolks, caster sugar, cornflour, and plain flour in a heatproof bowl. Pour the warm cream in gradually while whisking to incorporate.
- Place the gelatine into a little bowl and add cold water to cover it. Refill the pot with the custard mixture, reduce the heat to medium, and boil while whisking constantly for four to five minutes, or until the liquid thickens. Take it off the heat when it’s bubbling and really thick.
- After squeezing out any extra water, mix the gelatin into the custard until it dissolves completely. Cover, level the top, pour the custard over the shortbread base, and refrigerate for three hours to allow it to set.
- Using overlapping lines, arrange the strawberries on top of the set custard. If desired, brush with the heated jam to add more gloss. To serve, cut into nine large or twelve little squares. Keeps for up to two days in the refrigerator, but is best served the day of making.