Lemon Cream Fruit Tarts

The English May Bank Holiday has just been and, true to form, it rained. Although the day is truly meant to symbolise the coming of summer, the day just caused cravings for the sticky winter food I was just beginning to leave behind. So with my Granny coming for the day the first idea was to make a simple cake. But having just made the carrot cake I really wanted to welcome summer by making something light, zingy, fresh and bright. Which is just what I got from these delectable little tarts. These are so simple because they are basically just an assembly job. You take a little shortbread cup…Add a dollop of whipped cream…  Spoon on some lemon curd… Swirl the two together with a thin cake skewer…Top with slices of fresh strawberry!A bit of a fiddle to eat but totally gorgeous. The pastry was crumbly, the cream silky soft, the lemon curd sharp and the strawberries sweet. Perfect combination and perfect eaten warm in the sun. I used a Mary Berry recipe, but there’s not much too it really! The only true baking is the shortbread…

• 100g plain flour
• 50g caster sugar
• 100g butter
• 50g semolina or cornflour

1. Set the oven to 160C/gas 2.
2. Place all the ingredients together in a food processor and whizz until the mixture forms a smooth dough (if preferred this can be done by hand in a bowl using soft butter).
3. Roll out the dough to 5mm thickness and cut circles out with a cutter. Place gently in a bun tin. 4. Prick gently over the bottom with a fork. Bake for 10-15 minutes until firm and golden. 
5. Set aside to cool a little and slide out of tin onto a wire rack to cool before filling. Only fill when you are ready to eat!