A buttery, flaky homemade crust, vanilla bean custard filling, and juicy berries make this berry tart the ultimate summer dessert! It's a beautiful and delicious way to showcase all the best fruit this season has to offer!
In a medium bowl, mix the flour, sugar, and salt together. Using a fork or a pastry blender, cut the cold butter into the flour mixture and continue to cut it in until it begins to resemble breadcrumbs.
Add in the egg yolk and mix as best you can with a fork before adding 2 tbsp of the chilled water. Knead the dough together gently, adding more water if necessary to bring the dough together in a ball.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and allow to chill in the fridge for 30 minutes and preheat the oven to 375° while it chills.
Once chilled, roll the dough out into a 1/8 inch thick circle. If the dough is cracking as you roll, give it a few minutes to warm up slightly before trying again. To transfer it to the tart pan, roll the pastry up on your rolling pin and unroll it over the tart pan.
Press the bottom and sides into the pan. Trim the excess dough by rolling the rolling pin over the top of the tart pan. Prick the bottom of the pan a few times with a fork and lay a good-sized piece of parchment in the center of the crust. Add pie weights, uncooked beans, or uncooked rice to the center to weigh down the parchment.
Bake for 15 minutes, remove the parchment and weights from the crust and then bake for an additional 10 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown. Let cool completely.
Filling
Use the blunt side of a paring knife to remove the seeds from the vanilla pod.
Add the milk and vanilla beans to a medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat until the edges of the milk begin to bubble, but not boil.
While the milk heats, whisk together the sugar, salt, cornstarch, and egg yolks in a medium sized bowl. As soon as the milk starts simmering, remove it from the heat and slowly pour it into the egg yolk mixture while whisking constantly.
Add the mixture back into the saucepan and return to medium heat. Whisk constantly for 1-2 minutes until it starts to thicken. Lower the heat to low and continue to whisk for 3-4 minutes as the mixture continues to thicken and starts to bubble.
Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter until it is completely absorbed. Pour the custard into the cooled crust. Immediately cover the hot custard with plastic wrap, being sure the plastic wrap touches the entire surface to prevent a skin from forming.
Place in the fridge and cool for 4 hours, or overnight.
Top with fresh berries as desired being sure to cover the whole top of the custard. In a small bowl mix 2 tablespoons of apricot jam mix with 1 teaspoon of water and heat in the microwave for 10 seconds. Mix again before using a pastry brush to brush the glaze across the top of the berries.