Ingredients :

• The strawberries — Gariguettes or Ciflorettes if you can find them — they have a fruity acidity that calibrated supermarket strawberries lack. Choose fruits of uniform size for presentation. If too big, cut them in half. If too small, leave them whole.
• The pastry cream — You make it yourself, it’s non-negotiable. Two egg yolks, 250 ml whole milk, 50 g sugar, 20 g cornstarch, and a split vanilla bean. Or vanilla extract — half a teaspoon is enough and no one will see the difference.
• The shortcrust pastry — Store-bought is acceptable. But if you have a homemade one — even frozen — take it. The difference in texture, that slightly crumbly grain that breaks cleanly, is worth the extra ten minutes.
• The apricot jam — It purely serves as a shiny glaze. A tablespoon is enough. Heat it for 30 seconds in the microwave, strain it if it’s lumpy, and brush lightly. Too much glaze makes the tart sugary and sticky.