Ingredients

Pastry cream:
2 cups milk
1 vanilla bean
4 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch

Directions

Place milk in a saucepan. Split
vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape beans into milk along with the pods. Heat to a boil
stirring occasionally to prevent scorching. Meanwhile whip yolks and sugar until thick.
Remove vanilla pods from milk as it comes to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and ladle
enough of the hot milk into the yolk mixture, stirring well to warm it and make it more
liquid. Add this mixture back to the saucepan and stir constantly until it reaches a

simmer and is thick. Allow to bubble, stirring for 1 full minute. Pour into a glass or
stainless bowl, cover and refrigerate until cold. (May be done a day in
advance.)

Ingredients

Macaroon Crust:
9 ounces almond paste
1 egg white

Directions

Draw a 10-inch diameter circle on paper as a
guide. Place parchment baking paper over the guide. Soften almond paste with mixer on
low speed. Add egg white and mix thoroughly. Using a pastry bag fitted with a star tube,
pipe the macaroon mixture around the circle in rosettes. Prepare almond
cake.

Ingredients

Almond cake:
1/4 cup almond flour
1 tablespoon flour
1/2 cup sugar and 3 tablespoons sugar, separated
3 egg whites

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Mix both flours
and the 1/2 cup sugar together and set aside. Whip egg whites until they form medium
peaks. Add the 3 tablespoons sugar and continue to whip until well incorporated. Adding
by thirds, shake in the flour sugar mixture. Fold in until incorporated. Starting at the

center, pipe the almond cake batter inside the macaroon rosettes to create a solid base.
Bake on lower shelf of oven until base is cooked and rosettes are starting to brown, about
15 to 20 minutes.
Diplomat Cream and assembly: 2/3 recipe pastry cream 1 cup whipping cream 1-ounce
pistachio paste 1 to 1 1/2 pints fresh strawberries Apricot glaze Handful unsalted
pistachios
Whip cream to soft peaks. Stir pastry cream until smooth. Stir pistachio paste into
pastry cream then fold in whipped cream. Spread onto cooled tart base inside the macaroon
rosette border. Arrange whole or halved strawberries on top. Glaze with apricot glaze
using a pastry brush and sprinkle pistachios on top.