Lightly beat one egg; reserve, setting aside 10ml (2tsp). Place the flour, cubed butter and icing sugar in a food processor; pulse until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. Add the reserved beaten egg and 2-3 drops vanilla extract. Pulse until the pastry comes together in a ball. Wrap and refrigerate for at least 30min, then roll pastry out thinly.
Step 2
Line eight 3cm (11⁄4in) deep, 9cm (31⁄2in) diameter, loose- bottomed tart tins (see tip). Prick; refrigerate for 30min. Line with greaseproof paper and baking beans. Cook at 200°C (180°C fan) mark 6 for 10min. Remove paper and beans; cook for 5-10min. Brush with the 10ml (2tsp) reserved egg; cook for 1min. Cool slightly.
Step 3
Chop the white chocolate. Pour the cream into a small, heavy-based saucepan with the split vanilla pod and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat, lift out the vanilla pod and add the hot cream to the chocolate. Stir until the chocolate is completely melted. Cool.
Step 4
Separate the remaining two eggs. Mix the egg yolks and the Kirsch into the cooled chocolate and cream mixture. Whisk the egg whites until they form soft peaks, then fold carefully into the chocolate mixture until well incorporated.
Step 5
Pour the mixture into the pastry cases and cook at 190°C (170°F) mark 5 for 10-15min until just set (see tip). Leave to cool in the tins and refrigerate for 5hr or overnight. Don't worry if the filling seems very soft - it will become firmer as it chills.
Step 6
Remove the tarts from the fridge 30min before serving. Unmould the tarts and arrange the fresh fruit on top. Dust heavily with icing sugar and decorate with fresh mint sprigs just before serving.
Step 7
To freeze:
Prepare to the end of step 5, then cool, pack and freeze.
To serve:
Thaw overnight at cool room temperature and continue to the end of the recipe.
An experienced and highly skilled team of food writers, stylists and digital content producers, the Good Housekeeping Cookery Team is a close-knit squad of food obsessives. Cookery Editor Emma Franklin is our resident chilli obsessive and barbecue expert, who spends an inordinate amount of time on holidays poking round the local supermarkets seeking out new and exciting foods. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Her favourite carb is pasta, and our vibrant green spaghetti is her weeknight go-to. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating crispy corn and nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time (though she cannot resist a slice of tres leches cake). With a wealth of professional kitchen know-how, culinary training and years of experience between them, they are all dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work (and if they don’t – we’ll have the answer for why*) every time (*90% of the time the answer is: “buy an separate oven thermometer”!).
