AMARETTI STRAWBERRY TARTS

I am a sucker for packaging. Beautifully designed tins and boxes are irresistible to me. Unfortunately, I am the most disorganised person so I throw all manner of household debris into them and can’t remember what’s in each so they kind of lose their purpose. Anyway, I noticed I had a  lovely amaretti biscuit tin that I had bought at Christmas and the contents had miraculously not been eaten. My family probably thought it was full of anything other than the edible delights boasted on the exterior.  

I decided not to eat the amaretti biscuits with a black coffee, as is my wont but use them in a dessert. I knew I had some strawberries and found the following recipe, which is straightforward and makes 4 tarts. Three out of four of my family loved them. That’s a result in our house! The fussy one is my teenage daughter who doesn’t like strawberries. I know, imagine.

200g amaretti

100g unsalted butter, melted and cooled

200g mascarpone

2 heaped tbsp icing sugar, plus extra to dust

½ tsp vanilla extract

150g diced strawberries

20ml balsamic vinegar

1.   Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F/gas mark 3. Lightly grease 4 round tart tins (2cm deep, 8cm in diameter). Loose bottomed would be perfect but I don’t have any and the amaretti cases still came free very easily.

2.   Crush the biscuits in a food processor or put them in a strong freezer bag and bash them with a rolling pin, as is my preferred, stress releasing, option. Mix with the melted butter.

3.   Press the mixture into the base and sides of the tins. Bake for 10 minutes then allow to cool slightly. Remove the tart cases from pans and leave to cool.

4.   Whip mascarpone with 1½ tbsps of icing sugar and vanilla extract. Put your chopped strawberries into a bowl and combine them with balsamic vinegar and the rest of the icing sugar.

5.   Fill the tart cases with the mascarpone and then cover with the diced strawberries.

Serve to your family and wait for them to enthusiastically compliment the combined flavours of strawberry and almond. Someone may comment on the smell of vinegar and then you explain how balsamic really works with strawberries. They will agree and ask if there are any more tarts. If you have one who decides they don’t like strawberries, even ones enhanced with balsamic vinegar, then you can share out their tart between the rest of the family. Waste not want not.