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Mini Strawberry Pies with Creamy Diplomat Filling Recipe

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4.2 from 89 reviews

  • Author: Amina
  • Total Time: Approximately 2 hours 55 minutes (including chilling times)
  • Yield: 11 mini pies

Description

Mini Strawberry Pies are delightful individually sized pastries featuring a crisp, buttery pie crust filled with a smooth and creamy diplomat cream, layered with fresh strawberries. This dessert combines flaky pastry, rich vanilla pastry cream stabilized with gelatin, and fresh fruit to create an elegant and refreshing treat perfect for any occasion.

Ingredients

Pie Crust

  • 375 g All purpose flour
  • 270 g Unsalted butter (82% fat, very cold)
  • 120 g Water (very cold)
  • ¾ teaspoon Salt

Diplomat Cream

  • 500 g Whole milk (3% fat)
  • 100 g Granulated sugar
  • 80 g Egg yolk (approx. yolks of 4-5 eggs)
  • 25 g Corn starch
  • 25 g All-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons Vanilla extract
  • 50 g Unsalted butter (82% fat, room temperature soft butter)
  • 3 Gelatin sheets (3×1.7g=5g gelatin overall)
  • 200 g Heavy cream (very cold, 36% fat)

Assembly

  • 250 g Strawberries (fresh)
  • Mint leaves (optional, for decoration)
  • Egg wash: 1 egg yolk + milk (light egg wash for brushing)

Instructions

  1. Prepare Mini Pie Crust: Mix flour and salt and place in the freezer. Cut cold butter into small chunks and chill them in the freezer for 5-10 minutes.
  2. Make Dough: Rub very cold butter chunks into the flour mixture with fingers until sandy in texture. Gradually add very cold water, stirring each addition. Use hands to bring dough together without overworking. Leave some butter chunks intact.
  3. Chill Dough: Form dough into a disk, wrap in plastic, refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
  4. Roll Dough: After chilling, let dough rest briefly at room temperature until just pliable. Roll dough into a 42×30 cm (16×12 inch) rectangle on silicone baking mats or lightly floured surface. If dough softens too much, chill briefly in freezer.
  5. Cut Dough Circles: Measure muffin tin hole diameter and cut dough circles sized to fit the tin cavities (approx. 11 cm/4 inches diameter).
  6. Shape and Chill: Press dough circles into muffin tin cavities by flipping tin upside down and gently pressing. Chill dough-lined tin in freezer for 10 minutes.
  7. Bake Pie Crusts: Preheat oven to 200°C (372°F) no fan. Bake dough in tin for 20 minutes. Remove crusts carefully, brush lightly with egg wash, and bake an additional 5 minutes until golden brown and crisp. Let cool.
  8. Prepare Diplomat Cream: Soak gelatin sheets in cold water. Whisk sugar and egg yolks with a hand whisk until slightly fluffy, about 1-2 minutes. Add corn starch, flour, and vanilla extract, whisk until smooth.
  9. Cook Pastry Cream: Heat milk to simmer. Slowly pour warm milk into egg yolk mixture while whisking vigorously. Return mixture to saucepan and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until thickened, about 1 minute after boiling. Stir in softened gelatin sheets one by one until dissolved.
  10. Add Butter: Add softened butter in three stages, mixing well after each, until fully incorporated. Cool pastry cream to room temperature, cover with plastic wrap touching surface to prevent skin. Once cool, whisk 1-2 minutes to smooth texture without overwhisking.
  11. Whip Cream: Whip very cold heavy cream to soft peaks. Fold cream gently into pastry cream in three additions using a rubber spatula to maintain airiness.
  12. Assemble Mini Pies: Slice strawberries. Fill each baked pie crust with a bottom layer of sliced strawberries, then pipe or spoon diplomat cream on top.
  13. Decorate: Garnish with additional sliced strawberries and optional fresh mint leaves.
  14. Serve and Store: Serve immediately or refrigerate filled pies for a few hours to set further. Store leftovers in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.

Notes

  • Keep all dough ingredients very cold to achieve a flaky crust.
  • Do not overwork the dough to maintain butter chunks for flakiness.
  • If dough softens while rolling, chill it briefly to prevent sticking and tearing.
  • Press dough carefully into muffin tin cavities to keep shape uniform.
  • When cooking pastry cream, continue whisking through lumps to keep it smooth and glossy.
  • Do not overwhip diplomat cream after folding in whipped cream to avoid runny texture.
  • Gelatin stabilizes the diplomat cream, allowing it to hold shape better.
  • Mini pies are best eaten within 2-3 days when stored refrigerated.
  • Prep Time: 30 minutes (plus at least 2 hours chilling time for dough, and cool down time for cream)
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes (baking and pastry cream cooking)
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American

Find it online: https://aminabakes.com/mini-strawberry-pies-with-creamy-diplomat-filling-recipe/