My dad has never been a chocolate guy. So, he was always outnumbered in our household when it came to dessert. This father’s day I decided to make him something special. Strawberries are in season, which is one of his favorite things to eat for dessert. So I decided to make a puff pastry strawberry tarte tatin, which I’ve been wanting to make for a while. Traditionally made with apples, I created a version with fresh strawberries, caramel, and homemade puff pastry.

Fathers Day + Strawberries

My dad grew up in Maine, like me, and is one of 7 siblings. They had humble beginnings, so his taste in food is typically pretty bland. He’s a meat and potatoes kind of guy. For dessert, he loves caramel, strawberries, and coconut. Pretty tropical flavors. He loves strawberry shortcake. Coconut cream pie. Apple turnovers. So I knew making a puff pastry strawberry tarte tatin would be a big hit with him. It’s a recipe I’ve wanted to make for a while, too.

A tarte tatin is essentially an upside down puff pastry tart with fruit and caramel. You cook a caramel and pool it at the bottom of a cake pan, placing your fruit on top. Then, you place a circle of layered puff pastry on top and bake until caramelized and golden. The caramel on the bottom infuses the fruit with a rich flavor and a deeply caramelized and soft texture. I’ve had tarte tatin with apples, which is incredible, so I was so excited to try making it with strawberries. Last year while experimenting with strawberry recipes I discovered how well they go with maple, caramel, and whipped cream. So I also knew I wanted to make a whipped topping. 

Masterchef + Dessert Baking

One of the hallmarks of my dad’s personality is his love of the Red Sox. Mostly when they’re doing well. So not right now. I was named after a Red Sox outfielder with jersey number 24 and have collected plenty of memorabilia from my namesake. My dad has his own office / den in our house with hundreds of baseball and Red Sox themed posters, souvenirs, collectibles, bobbleheads, cards, bats, and signs. He even has a “magazine cover” that he paid for once where he posed as a professional baseball player. My best friend growing up thought it was real until we were around 12. 

My dad and I will be watching Masterchef Australia together this father’s day, which has become a tradition. I started watching it with him years ago, to bring him into the fold of my favorite show. My mom and I have our shows, and he and I have ours. So, when he has days off, now semi-retired, we get together and watch Masterchef. We typically have the same favorite contestants and the same grievances with people’s culinary fumbles. He’s learned a lot just from watching and listening to me critique people’s dishes from afar. It’s one of my favorite activities to share with him. When we’re not watching Masterchef, you can find him doing crossword puzzles or eating Saltine crackers. Puttering around the house fixing things and doing yard work. 

Puff Pastry Strawberry Tarte Tatin Recipes

We also love to play pickleball. We started during the pandemic when it was hard to think of reasons to leave the house. My old tennis courts at my high school (that were nearly falling apart) got turned into public pickleball courts after I graduated. To my dismay at first, as a tennis team member. But since, we’ve become one of the most frequent duos on the court. I, being extremely competitive, win every game we play. He’s in his late 60’s and is in pretty great shape and occasionally will go so hard for a point that he’ll end up in a somersault. I yell at him, afraid he got hurt. But he always bounces up with the energy and wonder of a young kid. 

I started this recipe early to make sure it was done in plenty of time for Father’s Day. I started by flipping open my cookbooks, looking for a puff pastry recipe. Claire Saffitz’s recipe from Dessert Person stood out to me, which has deceptively complex instructions. I followed each step carefully, placing half my butter in the freezer, cutting the other half into precise thin butter squares, and measuring a cup of ice cold water for the dough. I listened to Boygenius as I scooped the flour into a mixing bowl. Once it came together, I found myself with large clumps of buttery flour, as she suggested, and finished by washing scraps off my hands. The dough was off to chill in the fridge and I rested for a bit. 

Anxiety + Failing to Flip a Tart

2 hours later I rolled the dough and did a couple turns and folds to prepare it for the next day’s bake. At first it was too dry and I worried I might have to start over. But with a little power and will it came together into a beautiful layered dough. Off to chill in the fridge again. Claire’s recipe makes two doughs, so I placed the other one in the freezer for another day. Dreaming of beef Wellington, or mille-feuille. “Milly Filly” as they call it in Australia. I spent the rest of the day napping, taking a beautiful sunny walk, and cooking dinner. 

The next day I had pretty bad anxiety and forgot to write a lot of things down. It was definitely one of those everything sucks kind of days, and finishing this recipe was a challenge. I ran out of strawberries and had to run back out for more. I nearly burnt my caramel. Taking the puff pastry strawberry tarte tatin out of the pan was incredibly messy and ended with a miserable flop on the counter. I was able to scrape it back up and get it somewhat presentable. But the important thing is that it tasted good. I threw together a maple whipped cream to go on top and was ready for Father’s Day. 

Puff Pastry + Maple Whipped Cream

So, this recipe is definitely an example of things not always going to plan. It could have used a thicker layer of puff pastry. I could have taken the caramel off 30 seconds to a minute sooner. But that’s life. Luckily, sitting in my room by lamp light, I found myself coming down from my anxiety. The hypnotic focus effect of painting really calmed me down. And for the first time in a long time, I realized how special painting is to me. How it actually is good for me, no matter how much it intimidates me sometimes. I found my body relaxing and my mind wandering away from my worries and suddenly, the painting was complete.

I’m so excited now to spend today with my Dad. I gifted him a book of crosswords this morning and we enjoyed the puff pastry strawberry tarte tatin for breakfast. We are about to watch Masterchef, and might go for a walk. This has been a hard week, but I’m so happy to end it with my favorite people. The sun is out and I feel like I can relax a little bit. And I’m proud of this recipe, despite all the challenges it gave me. Happy Father’s Day!

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Print Pin

Strawberry Tarte Tatin

An upside down puff pastry and strawberry dessert with caramel

Course Dessert

Cuisine French

Keyword strawberries, tarte tatin

Prep Time 3 hours hours

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Author theforkedring

Ingredients

• 2 lbs fresh strawberries
• 200 ml white sugar
• 150 ml water
• 1 sheet of homemade or store-bought puff pastry
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 2 tbsp maple sugar

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 425°F.
• Grease and line a springform baking pan with parchment paper.
• Cut strawberries in half to prepare for lining your pan.
• In a medium saucepan, combine sugar and water. Heat over high until bubbling.
• Closely monitor caramel until it starts to brown. This will happen quickly. Remove from heat when color is a light amber / gold color. If the caramel continues cooking, place bottom of saucepan in a bowl of cold water (being careful not to get any in your pan).
• Let caramel cool for 1-2 minutes, then pour in the bottom of the springform pan on top of the parchment paper.
• Line your caramel layer with your strawberry slices, leaving as few gaps as possible.
• Remove puff pastry from fridge and let come to room temperature for a few minutes.
• Roll puff pastry into a large square and cut a circle into a slightly larger shape than your cake pan.
• Place your puff pastry on top of the strawberries and fold overhang onto the walls of the pan. This will shrink as it cooks.
• Sprinkle a layer of demerara sugar on top (optional) and place cake pan on top of a well lined baking sheet. The strawberries will leak.
• Cook for 25 – 35 minutes until golden brown and crispy. Let cool slightly, them remove sides of springform pan.
• Carefully place a large plate on top of your tart and flip it upside down onto the plate. Repair any holes with escape strawberries.
• For the whipped cream, place heavy cream and maple sugar in a bowl and whisk until soft peaks form. Serve on top of tart slices.

Notes

• If you’re making your own puff pastry, use a recipe that makes two doughs but don’t split the dough. This will help you roll it into the right size, but it’ll be much thicker than mine, which I think would be better.
• Don’t make the same mistake I did – I was so excited to artfully arrange strawberries that I had to pour the caramel over them. Instead, pour your caramel in a thin, even layer on the parchment paper before arranging your berries.
• You can also serve this with ice cream. I would recommend a real vanilla ice cream or chocolate gelato!