With vanilla, almond, and strawberries all topped on a buttery brioche base, these Strawberry Almond Brioche Tarts are simply to die for. They bring the flavors of spring to life with a subtle sweetness, and each bite of a warm tart provides the soft chew of the brioche and a smooth, creamy finish from the frangipane and strawberry middle.
I hope everyone has been doing the best to stay sane during this quarantine. Personally, I’ve been doing my best to only check into the news every once in a while rather than keeping it on as a steady stream of noise and stress in the background all day. I know it’s hard to ignore, but it’s too depressing to follow all day long and it only brings on extra worry and gets me in my head. So I’ve been trying to do my best to escape the noise for a little bit. Maybe this works well for me because I don’t feel like much has changed beyond driving less, or maybe it’s because I don’t think I’ll miss much one day that I won’t be able to catch up on the next. But limiting the amount of news I listen to about the virus has seriously helped me find a balance where my anxiety is now just internalized and manifesting itself in small ways–like constant teeth-grinding that I am aware of and yet cannot seem to stop–rather completely reaching its peak.
Anyway, I’m not here to remind you of the current, apocalyptic state of the world. No, I’m here to provide a distraction. That brings me to these Strawberry Almond Brioche Tarts. Can we just repeat that really quickly? Strawberry. Almond. Brioche. Tarts. Yes, brioche tarts are a thing! And that is something I clearly did not know back when I made my Apple Brioche Buns, but they fall under a similar category, and that is something that makes me incredibly happy. (Yes, I might have been Googling to find ways to incorporate bread making into this pies & tarts theme this year and I was not disappointed!).
You see, as much as I love making pie dough and getting my fingers dirty with the butter and sugar, I’ve also really found a love for bread making. And brioche is one of those things I’ve been making the most (90% of the time my brioche takes the form of Justin Gellatly’s buns–which I know I have mentioned before because they are amazing). So when I realized I could be making tarts with a base of brioche dough, I jumped at the chance to develop a recipe. And let me just say, these do not disappoint. I have three currently sitting in my freezer (because I needed to stop myself from eating them all somehow) and it hasn’t been easy to resist pulling one out and warming it up in the toaster oven.
They’re soft and buttery (if you warm them up the next day or two or from frozen they have a slight crisp to them) and they’re slightly sweet with the flavors of vanilla and almond coming through in the dough and the frangipane, the fresh strawberries tasting like spring in a bite, and a subtle honey and almond syrup to bring an extra hit of sweetness and a whole lot of shine to the table.
Is there anything more I can really say? I know that ingredients are sort of limited at the time, but I am hopeful that there’s a day that’ll come when they’re again plentiful and we can walk the streets with joy and not fear, for our health and for others. I must say though, that if you happen to be one of the lucky ones who has bread flour and yeast on hand, these are a pretty good use of time (granted, most of that is leaving it in the fridge for an extended period of time while you can puzzle or write or do a workout video or read a book or fall into a deep hole of Bon Appetit Test Kitchen videos on YouTube). And yes, you can fully expect more brioche tarts to come in the future!
| Prep Time | 1 hour |
| Cook Time | 17-20 minutes |
| Passive Time | 16-24 hours |
| Servings |
tarts
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- 75 mL milk
- 1 tbsp active dry yeast
- 300 grams bread flour divided into 60 grams + 240 grams
- 12 grams granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (or vanilla bean paste)
- 1/4 tsp almond extract
- 3 eggs large, room temperature
- 200 grams unsalted butter softened
- 2 1/2 Tbsp bread flour
- 85 grams unsalted butter softened, (6 Tbsp)
- 90 grams granulated sugar
- 90 grams almond flour
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 Tbsp all purpose flour
- 1 egg large, room temperature
- 1 recipe Vanilla Almond Brioche Dough *as above
- 1 recipe Frangipane *as above
- 8 ounces strawberries halved or quartered, patted dry
- 50 grams honey
- 50 mL water
- 1/8 tsp almond extract
Ingredients
Vanilla Almond Brioche Dough
Frangipane
Strawberry Almond Brioche Tarts
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- In a small saucepan, heat up the milk until it just reaches 110°F. If you don't have a thermometer, you can stick a clean finger in to feel when it is just a bit warm.
- Transfer the milk to a large liquid measuring cup or the bowl of a stand mixer. Sprinkle the active dry yeast on top of the milk and stir in. Allow to sit and bubble for 10-15 minutes.
- Once the yeast has activated, transfer to the bowl of a stand mixer. Using a wooden spoon, stir in 60 grams of bread flour. Cover the bowl with lightly greased plastic wrap and a clean towel. Allow the sponge to rise about 90 minutes or until double in size.
- After the sponge has doubled in size, knock the air out of it and add in the other 240 grams of bread flour, granulated sugar, and salt. Place the bowl on the stand mixer. Using the paddle attachment, mix until the flour is moistened. Mix in the vanilla and almond extracts. Slowly add in the eggs and mix until combined.
- Add the softened butter about 1 Tbsp at a time on low, mixing until fully incorporated after each addition. Occasionally scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula to make sure nothing gets stuck on the side. After all the butter has been incorporated, raise the speed to medium and continue to mix for and additional 8-10 minutes. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Sprinkle the dough with the additional 2 1/2 Tbsp of bread flour and allow to rest for 10 minutes.
- Turn the mixer on medium to medium-high until the dough is smooth and shiny and begins to pull away from the sides of the mixing bowl.
- Lightly grease a large bowl. Using the rubber spatula, help push the dough out of the mixing bowl and into the greased bowl. It should stretch a bit but plop straight out. You may need to use the spatula to scrape the last bit of the dough off the sides of the mixing bowl.
- Cover with a greased piece of plastic wrap and a clean towel. Allow to rest in a warm place to rise for 1 1/2-2 hours until about doubled in size.
- Refrigerate the dough for 6-8 hours, or overnight.
- In a medium bowl with a wooden spoon, or in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat together the softened butter, granulated sugar, almond flour, vanilla extract, all purpose flour, and egg until fully combined. Set aside in the refrigerator to chill while you shape the tarts.
- Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Remove the chilled dough from the refrigerator. Knock the air out of the dough. Cut the dough into 7 equal-sized pieces, about 125 grams each. Roll each piece of dough between your hands into a ball and place on the prepared baking sheets, making sure to leave plenty of space in between for flattening/shaping later. Cover the baking sheets with a greased piece of plastic wrap and a clean towel. Allow to rest for 40-60 minutes, the dough balls should rise a bit while resting.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F, making sure a rack is placed at the center of the oven.
- Using clean fingertips, gently flatten each ball of dough until you have a circle that is 4-5 inches across in diameter. Spread about 1 Tbsp (or a little more) of frangipane in the center, making sure to leave just about an inch of dough around it. Top with 6 or 7 sliced strawberries.
- Bake one baking sheet at a time for 17-20 minutes, until a light golden brown and baked through. The frangipane will be set and you should be able to feel if the tarts are baked through by touch.
- While the tarts are baking, mix together the honey, water, and almond extract in a small saucepan, heat over medium-low heat until the honey dissolves
- Remove the tarts from the oven and immediately brush over the sides of the tarts with the honey syrup. Allow to cool for about 5-8 minutes and brush with the syrup again.
These are best enjoyed while still warm from the oven. Wrap in plastic wrap and foil if you want to freeze them. If eating the next day or two, warm in a toaster oven or the oven until warmed through.