Classic Fruit Tart, part 3 (assembly)

Alrighty, let's finish this thing up. You're going to need: a pre baked tart shell, vanilla custard, some melted white or dark chocolate, an assortment of fruit (whatever you like) and some apricot jam.

Start by brushing the tart shell with a thin coating of chocolate. I like the white chocolate "melty" because it has a more neutral vanilla-like flavor than dark chocolate. Use what you like. You can skip this step altogether if you are going to serve your tart pretty soon after you make it. The chocolate coating just provides a moisture barrier so that the crust doesn't get soggy.

Next fill the tart with an even layer of the vanilla custard. You may need to whisk the custard a bit to loosen it up so it spreads well. Use enough custard to fill the tart shell to the top and level it off.

Now start adding the fruit. Whatever you like. You don't have to have it all symmetrical like above, you can just pile it on however you like.

A couple of hints about fruit choices: 

1. Start with the bigger pieces of fruit then add smaller stuff like blueberries. 

2. Bigger fruits should be cut down to more manageable sizes (strawberries were hulled and halved and the kiwi was peeled and cut into slices.)

2. If you want to add peaches, mandarin oranges and/or pineapple, I suggest using canned fruit. It has a better texture for cutting and eating with a fork.

It's totally optional if you want to glaze your tart, you don't have too. If you've used a lot of cut fruit that has exposed edges I suggest you glaze. It will keep the fruit from wilting and loosing moisture as the tart sits. Plus, the glaze is simple. Just heat up a bit of apricot jam (I've got about 1/4 cup here.) If needed you can add a bit of water to thin out the jam. You want a consistency similar to corn syrup. Also, if your jam has chunks of fruit, you'll want to strain it before glazing. 

Now just brush the glaze over the fruit until you have a glossy tart. Make sure the glaze covers any exposed cut fruit.

And there you have a delicious, Classic Fresh Fruit tart. I totes recommend you make this the same days you plan to serve it. It's best when it's ultra fresh. (Although I ate leftovers for two more days and they weren't bad.)