Place a fine mesh sieve in a heat-safe bowl and set aside.

Pour milk into a small saucepan. Split the vanilla bean lengthwise and use the tip of a sharp knife to scrape the seeds into the milk. Add the salt.

Turn heat to medium-high and bring milk mixture to just under a boil, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, mix the cornstarch and sugar in a medium bowl. Add the egg and whisk until smooth.

When the milk is ready, ladle ⅓ of the milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly.

Pour the egg mixture into the saucepan with the hot milk and continue whisking over medium-high heat until thick. There should be a few slow bubbles in the mixture, but don’t bring it to a full boil.

Remove from the heat and pour through the sieve.

Cool for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the cream is about 140 F.

Cut the butter into 1 tablespoon pieces and mix into the cream, one at a time, stirring until smooth.

Press a piece of plastic wrap directly on top of the cream to help it cool quickly and place in the refrigerator.

Preheat the oven to 375 F.

Place one sheet of phyllo dough on a flat surface covered with parchment paper. Keep the remaining pieces of phyllo dough covered with plastic wrap so that they don’t dry out.

Using a pastry brush, spread a thin layer of butter onto the piece of phyllo dough. Sprinkle ½ tablespoon of granulated sugar over the butter.

Place another piece of phyllo dough on top of the sugared layer and repeat until you have four layers. Make sure to butter and sugar the top of the last layer.

Cut the dough into circles using a 3 ½ inch round cookie cutter. Gently press each circle into one of the cups of an ungreased, non-stick muffin pan.

Bake the tart shells for 7 minutes, or until lightly golden brown. Let the tart shells cool for a couple minutes in the pan before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

First, rinse and dry the strawberries. Try to choose strawberries that are firm, small to medium in size, and have a nice pointed tip.

Take one strawberry and, using the tip of the sharp knife, make a deep cut vertically into the base of the strawberry to create a petal. Continue making similar cuts around the base of the strawberry to make a row of petals. You’ll probably have 4-5 cuts on the base. Moving up the strawberry, make similar cuts to create rows of petals. When you reach the top, make 1-2 slits in the tip of the strawberry. To open up the strawberry petals, gently press the tip and the petals of the strawberry down.

Carefully remove the stem and leaves of the strawberry before assembling the tarts.

Place a small spoonful of pastry cream in each tart shell.

Next, place a strawberry rose on top of the pastry cream.

Tarts are best eaten the day they’re assembled, but can be kept in the refrigerator.