One of my favorite things about June and July is that fresh strawberries are in season, and they are absolutely delicious. High in vitamin C, strawberries are naturally sweet and also contain potassium and iron as well. We usually have a carton or two of fresh strawberries in our fridge for snacks and for breakfast smoothies and cereal, but I have to buy extra to make this Strawberry Honey Tart Recipe. I can keep the calories to a minimum by using vegetable oil and non fat plain yogurt to make the pastry, and I avoid sugar by using honey instead. The yogurt gives the pastry a tangy taste that pairs very well with the strawberries. You can serve this tart plain or with a dollop of frozen vanilla yogurt. If you are serving this as a dessert for an elegant dinner, add 1 tsp of almond extract to the yogurt pastry, and garnish with fresh mint and slivered toasted almonds.
Ingredients:
1/3 cup honey
3 tbsps cornstarch
2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled
18 fresh strawberries, halved
1/2 cup water
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
Icing or confectioners sugar
Ingredients for Yogurt Pastry:
1 cup all purpose flour
2 tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 tbsp plain non fat yogurt
Method:
Begin by making your pastry. Use a large bowl to combine the flour, sugar and salt. Make a well in the middle of the ingredients, and pour in your oil and yogurt. Stir until the dough forms a stiff ball. Use the palm of your hand to flatten the ball a little, wrap it up in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for half an hour.
Set your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Use low fat cooking spray to spray a 9 inch tart pan. Use a floured rolling pin to roll the chilled dough into an 11 inch circle, and place into your tart pan. Pierce the pastry in four or five places with a fork. Bake the tart shell for about 12 minutes – it should turn a golden color. Cool on a wire cooling rack.
Use a small saucepan to measure in the honey and cornstarch. Turn heat to low. Mix well, add the 2 cups of fresh strawberries and mash them with a potato masher. Add water and lemon juice and turn heat up to medium. Simmer gently and stir constantly. Keep simmering until the strawberry honey mixture has thickened, then cool it completely.
Spread the cooled strawberry mixture into the cooled crust. Arrange the halved berries over the filling. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.
This recipe makes 8 servings with 204 calories each. There are 34 carbs per serving, 2 grams of protein, 142 mgs of sodium, 7 grams of fat and 0 mgs of cholesterol.
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