‘Tis the season for holiday cookies, but I decided to try something different this year. I hadn’t made mini tarts before, so I decided to make Strawberry Thyme Mini Tarts and spoiler alert, they are delicious!
When I was at Fresh Thyme recently, I could smell the sweetness from the strawberries as I passed by. So, I decided to buy a bunch. The flavors of the sweet strawberries and the subtle dry and minty flavor from the thyme paired so nicely together for these cute little tarts.
To save a little time, I decided not to make my own crust. It’s a busy time of year for all of us and I think it’s ok to cut corners every now and then. If you don’t own a rolling pin, use a chilled wine bottle to help you roll the dough flat. This has been a tip that I’ve used and shared for years.
If you try the recipe, be sure to let me know what you think!
STRAWBERRY THYME MINI TARTS
Ingredients
For the Filling:
- 2-3 cups strawberries
- 1 tablespoon cornflour
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- Half a lemon, juiced
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme and extra sprigs for garnish
- 1 box of pre-made pie crusts (2 per box)
- 6 mini tart tins
For the Strawberry Syrup:
- 2 cups fresh strawberries, chopped
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- On a floured surface, roll out dough so it flattens. If you don’t have a rolling pin, use a chilled wine bottle to help roll the dough flat.
- Press dough into the tins and trim the access dough.
- Place in the fridge for 20 minutes to chill.
- While the dough chills, slice the strawberries length-wise and place in a bowl.
- Squeeze lemon juice over the sliced strawberries and set aside.
- In a small bowl, mix the cornflour and brown sugar together until combined.
- Pull the tart tins from the fridge and poke the dough with a fork.
- Bake in the oven for 8-10 minutes until the the crust is looking lightly golden.
- Remove from oven and sprinkle most of the flour/sugar mixture and thyme into the tins, leaving some leftover for sprinkling on top of the strawberries.
- Add the strawberries into the tins, overlapping them - the arrangement doesn’t have to be perfect.
- Sprinkle the rest of the flour/sugar mixture over the tops of the strawberries.
- Bake in the oven for 15 minutes or until the crust is crisp and light brown.
- Let cool.
- In a small saucepan, add the chopped strawberries and maple syrup and bring to a boil. Stir constantly.
- Add brown sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time (2 tablespoons total) and continue to mix together.
- Once the syrup is thick (to your liking), blend the mixture in a blender until smooth.
- Pour syrup over the strawberries in the tins.
- Garnish with additional fresh thyme, if desired and serve.
Images © Regan Baroni 2015.
[…] You should also check out my Strawberry & Thyme Mini Tarts. […]