Rustic Pear Tart

In his attempt to eat more healthfully, my dear fiance bought a big bag of pears from Costco. I commend him for his effort but 2 weeks later the bag was still over 1/2 full and the pears were rapidly ripening. I started searching for a recipe to use up the delicious pears and came across this easy, pretty pear tart.



I love the simplicity of the rustic style. No pie plates needed. No crimping of the edges. Just a flat baking tray and a rolling pin. This pie showcased the pears perfectly. It let their natural sweetness shine through.



Rustic Pear Tart
10" Round | Ellie Krieger, Food Network

Crust:
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2 tablespoons lowfat buttermilk
3 tablespoons ice water

Filling:
3 medium pears
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Glaze:
1 teaspoon honey
1/4 teaspoon boiling water


To prepare the crust, in a medium bowl whisk together the whole-wheat pastry flour, all- purpose flour, granulated sugar and salt. Add the butter and using two knives or a pastry cutter, cut the butter into the flour mixture until you get a pebbly, course texture. In a small bowl combine the buttermilk and ice water. Using a fork, gradually mix the buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture. Pat the dough into a 4-inch round and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

In the meantime, preheat the oven to 425 degrees F, and prepare the filling. Peel the pears, core them and cut into 1/4-inch slices. In a large bowl toss the pear slices with the lemon juice. Sprinkle in the cornstarch, brown sugar and cinnamon and toss until the pears are evenly coated. Set aside.

On a lightly floured surface, roll the chilled dough into a large circle about nine inches in diameter. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and draping the dough over the rolling pin, transfer to the prepared baking sheet. If the dough breaks at all patch it up with your fingers.

Arrange the pears in a mound in the center of the dough, leaving a 2-inch boarder. Fold the border over the filling. It will only cover the pears partially and does not need to be even.

Bake the tart for 15 minutes, and then reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F, keeping the tart in the oven all the while, and bake for another 40 minutes, until the pears are tender and the crust is golden brown.

In a small bowl stir together the honey and boiling water to make a glaze. When the tart is done remove it from the oven and brush the honey glaze all over the top of the fruit and crust. Transfer to a plate to cool slightly.

Dulce de Leche Pecan Tarts

I love the time between back to school and Christmas. Even though the weather sucks and the sun disappears way too early, I still embrace this season. Leading up towards Christmas the festive feeling in the air becomes thicker and everything looks more magical strewn with lights and covered in frost. People gather together to celebrate and embrace family and friends. This year I am excited to be celebrating two Thanksgivings - Canadian AND American!

With fall just around the corner, this recipe was perfect to celebrate the close of September. With the addition of chocolate and dulce de leche, it is a decadent twist on traditional pecan pie. The recipe comes from Gourmet Magazine. The only change I made is to bake these in small tart pans instead of as a large pie. Note: You may need to make pastry for a double-crust pie if you are making tarts, because the ratio of crust to filling will be higher for tarts.

Dulce de Leche Pecan Pie
9" Pie | adapted from Gourmet, October 2009

Pastry dough for single-crust pie
1 cup dark corn syrup
1/2 cup sugar 2 large eggs
1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup bittersweet chocolate (6 oz), melted
1 1/4 cups pecans (5 oz), chopped, plus whole pecans for garnish
1/4 cup dulce de leche

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F with rack in middle. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin, then fit into a 9-inch pie plate. Trim and crimp edge.

2. Whisk together corn syrup, sugar, eggs, flour, butter, vanilla, and salt until combined. Stir in melted chocolate and pecans and pour into pie shell.

3. If dulce de leche is very thick, thin with 2 to 3 teaspoon water. Pour dulce de leche over top of pie and swirl with a fork (swirl will not be visible in baked pie). Arrange whole pecans on top. Bake until top is puffed but slightly wobbly in center, about 50 minutes. Cool to room temperature, at least 2 hours.

Rustic Free-Form Apple Tart

I have a soft-spot for free-form tarts. Their imperfections make them homely, welcoming and unpretentious. This galette recipe comes from Alice Waters. The apple peels and cores are used to flavor a glaze that gets brushed on top of the tart.

Rustic Free-Form Apple Tart
9" Tart | Alice Waters

Dough:
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, cut in 1/2" pieces
3 1/2 tablespoons chilled water

Filling:
2 pounds tart, firm apples, peeled and sliced (save peels and cores)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
5 tablespoons sugar

Glaze:
1/2 cup sugar

1. Mix flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl; add 2 tablespoons of the butter. Blend in a mixer until dough resembles coarse cornmeal. Add remaining butter; mix until biggest pieces look like large peas.

2. Drizzle in water, stir, then add more, until dough just holds together. Toss with hands, letting it fall through fingers, until it’s ropy with some dry patches. If dry patches predominate, add another tablespoon water. Keep tossing until you can roll dough into a ball. Flatten into a 4" disk; refrigerate. After at least 30 minutes, remove; let soften so it’s malleable but still cold. Smooth cracks at edges. On a lightly floured surface, roll into a 14-inch circle about 1/8 inch thick. Dust excess flour from both sides with a dry pastry brush.

3. Place dough in a lightly greased 9-inch round tart pan, or simply on a parchment-lined baking sheet if you wish to go free-form, or galette-style with it. Heat oven to 400 degrees F.

4. Overlap apples on dough in a ring 2 inches from edge if going galette-style, or up to the sides if using the tart pan. Continue inward until you reach the center. Fold any dough hanging over pan back onto itself; crimp edges at 1-inch intervals. Brush melted butter over apples and onto dough edge. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons sugar over dough edge and the other 3 tablespoons over apples.

5. Bake in center of oven until apples are soft, with browned edges, and crust has caramelized to a dark golden brown (about 45 minutes), making sure to rotate tart every 15 minutes. Make Glaze: Put reserved peels and cores in a large saucepan, along with sugar. Pour in just enough water to cover; simmer for 25 minutes. Strain.

6. Remove tart from oven, and slide off parchment onto cooling rack. Let cool at least 15 minutes. Brush glaze over tart, slice, and serve.

Mango Peach Pie

This peach pie from Paula Deen is one of my favorites. This time around I gave it a tropical twist from the addition of mangoes. The pie looks deceptively like a regular peach pie but you get a nice surprise when you take a bite and find the unexpected hint of mango flavor.

The July 2008 Cooks Illustrated has an interesting bit of info on avoiding mealy, grainy peaches. Apparently, temperatures at or below 40 degrees F can destroy the activity of certain enzymes in the peach that normally break down pectin in its cell walls during the ripening process. If these enzymes are deactivated before the fruit is ripe, the pectin will remain intact and the peach will have a mealy texture. Take home message: Don’t refrigerate your peaches unless you’re sure they’re ripe.



Peach Mango Pie
9" pie | adapted from Paula Deen

3 cups fresh peaches, peeled and thickly sliced (can substitute frozen)
3 cups mango (approx. 3 mangoes)
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
5 tablespoons butter, divided
1 prepared pastry for a 9” double crust pie
1 egg

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Roll one half of the pie dough out to fit the bottom of your pie pan, allowing a 1” over hang and place in the refrigerator until ready to use.

2. In a large sauce pan, add peaches, lemon juice, sugar and flour and stir until coated. Bring fruit mixture to a low boil. Reduce heat to low and cook until fruit is just slightly tender. Remove pan from heat. Stir in almond extract, nutmeg and three tablespoons butter. Allow to cool slightly.

3. Remove pie pan from refrigerator and fill with the cooled mixture. Dot the top of the fruit with the pieces of the remaining two tablespoons butter. Roll out the second crust and decorate the top of the pie with a lattice top or any way you like. Decoratively crimp the edges.

4. In a small bowl, whisk the egg together with 1 tablespoon of water. Brush the top of your pie with the egg wash. Bake for 10 minutes then lower heat to 350 degrees F for an additional 30 minutes or until the top is golden and the fruit is bubbly.

Strawberry Cheesecake Tart

A sugar cookie crust is filled with a tangy-sweet no-bake cheesecake filling and topped generously with strawberries. I can't think of a better summer dessert! You only need to turn your oven on to bake the crust, but if you're in one of those areas experiencing a heat wave or it's just too hot to think of using the oven, you could even skip this step if you use a graham cracker crust or crushed vanilla wafer crust.



It is best served the same day it is made, although you can make the dough and filling in advance and/or bake the crust in advance and fill the tart the day it will be served.

For the beautiful topping, the strawberry slices are layered on top, starting with from the outside edge and working inwards. This tart definitely has a "wow factor" when you serve it. The layering of the strawberries looks more complicated than it really is.



Strawberry Cheesecake Tart
9" tart | adapted from Nick Malgieri and Allrecipes.com

Crust (Nick Malgieri)
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cut into 6 pieces
1 large egg
1 tablespoon cold water

Filling (Allrecipes.com)
1 stick (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp lemon zest
2 pints strawberries, sliced

Glaze
1/4 cup strawberry jam
1 tbsp water

Crust:
1. Combine all the dry ingredients in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Pulse 3-4 times to mix. Add the butter and pulse 10-12 times to mix the butter in finely. Add the egg and water and pulse repeatedly until the dough forms a ball.

2. Invert the bowl to a lightly floured work surface and carefully remove the blade. Form the dough into a disk and wrap it in plastic. Refrigerate dough 1 hour or up to 3 days.

3. Line a 9" fluted tart pan with the dough and prick all over with a fork to avoid bubbling or fill with pie weights. Bake at 400 degrees F for 12-20 minutes or until light golden brown and fully baked. Cool fully.

Filling:
1. Beat together cream cheese, sweetened condensed milk, vanilla and zest until smooth and lump-free. Spread evenly over cooled crust and arrange sliced strawberries on top in a decorative pattern.

Glaze:
1. Heat together jam and water. Brush over the strawberries. Refrigerate until serving time.

TWD: Walnut Brownie Tart

Jessica of Domestic Deep Thought chose the Coffee Ice Cream Tart for this week's TWD recipe.

I made the crust as directed using walnuts instead of almonds. I didn't use ice-cream because even though it sounded delicious, I needed something to bring to work that didn't have to be frozen. So... instead of filling it with the tweaked ice-cream mixture, I made a chocolate syrup brownie and baked it in Dorie's crust.



Note: The crust was delicious enough to eat on its own. I may even make sable-like cookies from the crust dough next time and skip the filling altogether!

I have included my version of the tart shell and chocolate syrup brownie, but check out Jessica's website for the original recipe.

Walnut Brownie Tart
1- 10" tart | adapted from Dorie

For the Crust
1 cup (4 ounces) walnuts
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup (packed) light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
pinch of salt
1/2 stick (4 tbsp) cold unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces)
1 large egg
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Brownie Filling
1/4 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup chocolate syrup
2 eggs
pinch salt
1/2 cup chocolate chips

1. Crust: Lightly butter a 10-inch fluted tart pan and line a baking sheet with parchment. Put the walnuts, flour, sugar, nutmeg and salt in a food processor and pulse for about 10 seconds, or until the nuts are coarsely chopped. Toss in the pieces of butter and pulse until the dough resembles coarse meal. Add the egg and extract and continue to pulse until the dough forms clumps and large curds, about 10 seconds. Turn the dough out into the tart pan and press the dough evenly over the bottom and up the sides of the tart pan. Freeze for 30 minutes.

2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Bake crust for 10 minutes then reduce heat to 350 degrees F. While crust is baking, make filling.

3. Filling: Cream butter, sugar and eggs until creamy and well blended. Add salt. Stir in flour and blend thoroughly. Add chocolate syrup, vanilla and chocolate chips. Stir. Pour over semi-baked walnut crust. Bake for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out almost clean. Loosen around edges and allow to cool in the pan.

Maple Pecan Tartlets

Baking Illustrated is one of my favorite Cooks Illustrated cookbooks. My second favorite being The New Best Recipe and my third being The Best 30 Minute Recipe. In general there seems to be a love/hate relationship going on with Cooks Illustrated/America's Test Kitchen. I personally trust their recipes enough to make them for a dinner party without prior testing. They do know what they're talking about and the food tastes great, however, I've noticed that they publish a lot of the same recipes in different books with a slightly different spin on them. That is why of all their publications, these 3 are my favorites. They each provide a sufficiently different approach to cooking so the recipes aren't redundant. While you are prepping your filling, bake your crust. Try to time it so that the filling is ready to be poured immediately into the hot crust. Maple Pecan Pie 24 minis | Baking Illustrated 1 recipe for basic 9" Pie Crust 1/4 cup butter 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 tsp salt 3 eggs 1 tsp vanilla 1 cup pure maple syrup 1 1/2 cups pecans, chopped (I left mine whole) 1. Prehat oven to 350 degrees F. Roll out your pie crust and line your mini muffin or mini tart tins.

2. Filling: Melt butter in a double boiler. Add sugar and salt and stir to dissolve. Cool slightly then add eggs, vanilla and maple syrup. Continue stirring, still using the double boiler, until it reaches 130 degrees on an instant-read thermometer. It will be glossy and smooth. Stir in pecans. 3. Pour filling into hot crust. Bake 50-60 minutes or until the center is not jiggly. (It will continue to cook as it cools too, from the residual heat). Cool fully, at least 4 hours, and serve at room temperature.

TWD: Cranberry Lime Galette

This galette/free-form tart was WAY too tart for my liking. My favorite part was the little chunks of apple that burst with sugary sweetness especially in comparison with the cranberries. Next time I will either add WAY more sugar or increase the ration of apples to cranberries and reduce the lime juice. On the plus side, it was a really pretty, festive-looking pastry. It was one that made you go, "wow" when you saw it. It was elegant in a relaxed, unpretentious way. Thanks to Whitney, April and Elizabeth of Celestial Confections for selecting this week's TWD recipe found on page 364-365 of Baking: From My Home to Yours.

TWD: All-American Baby Apple Pies

This recipe was chosen by Emily of Sandmuffin, p. 300-302.



SOOO cute! This recipe was the perfect pick this week. My son has been asking for "fruit pie" for the past few days, so he was thrilled when I said that I would make him an apple pie that was just his size. "I ate the WHOLE PIE mommy!".

I made them extra special for him, with a mountain of whipped cream and caramel sauce. Hmm... I hope that doesn't make me a bad mom for giving him so much sugar! Tee hee.

TWD: Caramel Pumpkin Tart

This week's recipe was chosen by Janell of Mortensen Family Memoirs on pages 322-323.

It features a sweet, caramel twist on your standard pumpkin pie.
Dorie said to go dark with the caramel. I think I went a little TOO dark! There ended up being some blackened bits that I didn't scrape into the final product. I was afraid that the whole thing would taste like burnt sugar, but my fears were soon alleviated when I tried the first forkful.



I'm still trying to accustom myself to the texture of pumpkin pie. I love pumpkin spice-flavored treats like pumpkin cheesecake and pumpkin loaf, I just don't like the custardy texture of pumpkin PIE. I opted to make 2 thin 8" tarts instead of 1 deep 9" pie. The ratio of sweet, buttery crust to rich, complex pumpkin filling was just right for me.

Bonus: My kitchen smelled soooo good. It trumped any pumpkin pie Yankee Candle I've ever smelled :)

Lemon Tart

This tart was amazing through and through - From the tender, flaky shell to the tart filling dusted with powdered sugar for a touch of sweetness. I love making lemon squares and tasts like this one because they are so easy. No cooking or tempering eggs on the stove... just beat the filling ingredients together, pour into a hot crust and bake.

Presentation: Held its shape and sliced wonderfully.
Taste: Delicate yet bold.
Texture: Light, delicate crumbly crust and satiny filling.

I baked this in an 11" tart pan and had enough for a few extra mini tartlets. In my experience, tart pans, especially fluted ones, immediately up the "fancy-factor". These go from picnic to party just by changing their shape they are baked in. The recipe also halves well, just watch your baking time.



Lemon Tart
9 x 13 pan | Cook’s Illustrated, May 1998

Crust
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter, cold, cut into 1-inch pieces

Filling
6 eggs, room temperature
3 cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest
1 cup lemon juice
1 cup flour
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Note:
The lemon filling must be added to a warm crust. The 30-minute chilling and 20-minute baking of the crust should allow plenty of time to prepare the filling. If not, make the filling first and stir to blend just before pouring it into the crust. Store in plastic wrap, refrigerated for up to two days.

1. For the crust: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 x 13 pan.

2. Pulse flour, confectioners’ sugar, cornstarch, and salt in food processor workbowl fitted with steel blade. Add butter and process to blend, 8 to 10 seconds, then pulse until mixture is pale yellow and resembles coarse meal, about three 1-second bursts. (To do this by hand, mix flour, confectioners’ sugar, cornstarch, and salt in medium bowl. Freeze butter and grate it on large holes of box grater into flour mixture. Toss butter pieces to coat. Rub pieces between your fingers for a minute, until flour turns pale yellow and coarse.) Sprinkle mixture into lined pan and press firmly with fingers into even, 1/4-inch layer over entire pan bottom and about 1/2 inch up sides. Refrigerate for 30 minutes, then bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes.

3. For the filling, whisk together the eggs, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and flour. Pour over the crust and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the filling is set. Let cool to room temperature.

4. Dust with Confectioners’ sugar and cut.

TWD: Crunchy and Custardy Peach Tart

The recipe this week was selected by Rachel of Sweet Tarte for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie. Find the recipe at her blog or in Dorie's book.



There couldn't have been a more perfect pick than this one to showcase summer fruits. I actually used nectarines because I wasn't in the mood to peel the peaches and nectarine skin is OK in baking unlike peach skin which should be removed. I was thankful to have freestone nectarines which held their shape when I de-pitted them and fanned them out in the tart shell. The clingstones always come out messily. They get hidden in double-crust pies.

Peaches always remind me of the summer of Grade 4 when I read James And The Giant Peach by Roald Dahl. I had a theme that summer - peach juice (from a sugary drink mix), fuzzy peach gummy candy and fresh sliced peaches. The book captured my young imagination and I couldn't tear myself from it and I read it cover to cover in one afternoon. The story of this tart is similar: It's so delicious that if left to my own devices I'd probably eat all in one afternoon.

Blueberry Almond Custard Tart

This tart is a great way to show off my hand-picked British Columbian Blueberries. I developed this for the BC Blueberry Council's blogger recipe contest (closing tonight!).

The blueberries sit on top of a sweet, tender pie crust then they are covered by a creamy, almond custard and baked to golden perfection. The kitchen was filled with the most enticing aroma of toasted almonds and sweet cream. It is quick and easy as the whole thing is made in the food processor. Both the crust and the filling can be made ahead of time to be baked according to your schedule.



The tart slices easily and cleanly to shows off a striking contrast between the berries and the filling. Sturdy enough to be transported to a picnic yet classy enough to be the star at your next summer party. With all those blueberries it's got lots of anti-oxidants. You can easily add variety and color with sliced peaches, halved cherries, whole raspberries or other complementary fruit.

Wish me luck in the contest and do try this tart. It's dee-lish!



Blueberry Almond Custard Tart
1 - 9" tart

Sweet Tart Crust
1 1/4 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup very cold butter, cubed
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp water

Almond Custard Filling
1/2 cup sugar
2/3 cup blanched almonds (or 1/2 cup ground almonds)
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla or almond extract

1 1/2 cups blueberries
up to 1/2 cup peaches, cherries, raspberries (optional)

1. Crust: In a food processor pulse together flour, sugar and salt. Add butter and pulse until resembles coarse meal. Whisk together egg, vanilla and water and stir into the dry ingredients. The dough should be crumbly but able to hold together when squeezed. You may need a teaspoon more water if it does not hold together.

2. Press the crust into a 9" tart pan (with removable base). Prick all over with a fork. Freeze for 30 minutes or up to 24 hours.

3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Bake the frozen shell for 10 to 12 minutes, until lightly golden. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes while you prepare the filling. Decrease oven temperature to 350 degrees F.

4. Filling: In a food processor, pulse together sugar, almonds and salt until finely ground. Add the butter and process until smooth. Add the eggs and vanilla or almond extract. Process until smooth. Refrigerate airtight until ready to use. This can be made up to 24 hours in advance.

5. Arrange the blueberries and other fruit (if using) in the slightly cooled tart shell. Gently spread the almond cream on top.

6. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until the almond custard is set and golden brown. Cool completely before serving. The tart can be made 1 day in advance. Serve cold or at room temperature. To store: cover fully cooled tart and refrigerate.

Raspberry Nectarine Pie

Summer fruits are the best. Vibrant, juicy and refreshing. They tantalize all your senses and embody the essence of summer. The only problem is - just like summer, they are fleeting with only a short window of time to be enjoyed before they quickly get bruised and overripened. Luckily for us overripe peaches and nectarines are wonderful for baking. These fruits take on a new life in this pie, playing a melody of sweetness and tartness. Ruby-red raspberries contrasted against the bright yellow nectarines.

Did you know?
-genetic studies show that smooth nectarine skin is from a recessive gene, whereas fuzzy peach skin is from a dominant gene.
-nectarines bruise more easily from not having fuzz.
-peaches shouldn't be refrigerated.
-these fruits and they stop ripening after they are picked.
-peach skin should be removed before using in baking but nectarine skin can be left on.



I had to use a pie crust shield (like the one above) because my edges were browning way too quickly, however, as you can see the edges are still too brown. By the way, the pie crust shield is an invaluable tool. I use it every time I make pies and it saves so much time over fiddling with aluminum foil to cover the edges. Well worth the $5 investment.

Raspberry Nectarine Pie
9" Pie | Canadian Living Baking Book

Sweet Pastry for double-crust 9" pie (below)

5 cups (1 1/2 lbs) sliced peeled peaches/nectarines
1 cup raspberries, fresh or frozen
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup sugar *could probably use less but I used it all and loved it
1 tbsp lemon juice

Milk and sugar for brushing/sprinkling

1. Line 9-inch pie plate with bottom crust pastry dough. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. In large bowl, combine nectarines/peaches, raspberries, sugar, flour, lemon juice. Fill pastry shell with peach mixture.

2. Moisten edges of bottom crust. Cover with top crust (or latticed top crust). Trim and flute edges. Cut steam vents. Brush top with milk or cream; sprinkle lightly with granulated sugar.

3. Bake at 425 degree F in bottom third of oven for 15 minutes then reduce heat to 350 degrees F and bake for 35 to 45 minutes longer or until peaches are tender, filling thickened and crust golden. Cover edges with foil/pie shield if browning too quickly. Store at room temperature.

Double Crust Sweet Pastry
pastry for one 9" double crust | Chocolate & Zucchini

2 1/4 cups flour
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
14 tbsp cold butter, cubed
4 tbsp milk

1. Combine flour, sugar, salt in food processor.
2. Pulse in butter, don't overprocess.
3. Add in milk as needed just so it comes togethers when you press some between your fingers. Divide dough in half and refrigerate or freeze, well wrapped.

Linzer Tart

When I pulled this out of the oven, my heart did a little jump because of how pretty it was. I was definitely proud to serve this tart and I got a lot of "you MADE that" comments because apparently it looked storebought!

The fragrant nutty tart pastry comes together in seconds and the filling is nothing more than simple raspberry jam with a splash of lemon. This tart is much more than the sum of its parts.



Linzertorte originated in Linz, Austria and is often served around Christmas. But... knowing me, I often make recipes out of season, like pumpkin cheesecake in the summer! This torte has stood the test of time since the 1700's with only a minor change that now many people include ground hazelnuts in the crust (I stuck to almonds though). Blackcurrant jam is most traditional but nowadays most common is raspberry.

The recipe comes straight from the book Baking for All Occasions by Flo Braker. No alterations and none needed next time either except that her recipe makes one 11" tart but I made one 9" tart and a baby 3". They were soooo cute beside each other. Of course my 3 year old had the baby one and it was 'just the right size'.



Linzer Tart
11" Tart | Flo Braker

Pastry:
2 cups flour
2/3 cup dried bread crumbs, fine
1 1/2 cups ground almonds
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2/4 tsp allspice (optional)
1 cup butter, room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
1 egg
zest from 1 lemon

Filling:
1 cup raspberry jam
1 tbsp lemon juice

Egg Wash:
1 egg, beaten

Directions:
1. For Pastry, combine all dry ingredients. In a mixer with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar until smooth. Add egg and lemon zest then flour mixture until it comes together into a dough. Divide in half and wrap each half in plastic wrap for 1 hour or until firm enough to roll. You can also freeze it for up to 1 month and just bring to room temp before rolling out.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine lemon juice and raspberry preserves.
3. Assembly: Roll out 1/2 the dough. Line your tart pan with the pastry and chill for 30 minutes (or up to 1 day). Spoon preserves into pastry-lined pan. Using a pastry wheel or knife, cut dough into strips to form lattice. Arrange lattice strips on top. Note: Linzer tarts do not have the lattice strips interwoven, they are instead laid all one way and then the rest laid on top of them going the other direction or diagonally.
4. If desired, brush tart edges and strips with egg wash. Bake 35-45 minutes or until pastry is done and golden brown. Cool fully before removing from tart pan and serving.

TWD: Fresh Berry Tart

Strawberries remind me of my childhood summers. We used to have a big yard and my dad used to have a ton of strawberry plants which bore the biggest, reddest, best strawberries. He used to lovingly slice them and arrange them on a plate, each slice overlapping the previous one just-so. Served with sweet whipped cream of course! As a little girl I felt so special picking berries with my daddy.

With summer around the corner, this tart is my way of welcoming Mr. Sun. I have been so cold all year long, even wearing a scarf in the office! I am ready for some heat and a chance to wear some of the cute summer tank tops and flip flops I've been storing in my closet. Some women have a thing for shoes - I have a thing for flip-flops!

There are 3 parts to the classic tart: crust, filling, berries. The filling would normally be a traditional stove cooked pastry cream but I opted for an easier and just as yummy alternative - a white chocolate cream cheese filling. Reminiscent of cheesecake with a tangy sweetness from the interplay of melted white chocolate. It's less finicky to deal with than 'real' pastry cream (no eggs, no stove!) and absolutely delicious to boot. This made a great Mother's Day dessert. This tart is one of those desserts that appears way more time-consuming and impressive than it actually is. Love it.

The recipe this week was chosen by Cristine of Cooking with Cristine. See her blog for the original recipe. I have posted mine including adaptations below as it is quite different from Dorie's.

Fresh Berry Tart
1 - 9" Tart | heavily adapted from Dorie


Sweet 9" Tart Crust
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup icing sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick plus 1 tablespoon very cold unsalted butter, cubed
1 large egg yolk

1. Pulse together the flour, sugar and salt in a food processor to combine. Add butter cubes and pulse until resembles coarse peas. Add the egg and process in long pulses until the dough forms clumps and curds. Just before you reach this stage, the sound of the machine working the dough will change. Turn the dough out onto the counter and gently/carefully knead.
2. Roll or press the dough into a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Freeze the crust for at least 30 minutes before baking.
3. Line the crust with waxed paper and pie weights then bake at 375°F for 25 minutes. Remove weights and bake another 8 minutes until firm and golden brown, fully baked. Storing: Dough can be wrapped and kept in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 2 months. The fully baked crust can be packed airtight and frozen for up to 2 months, I prefer to freeze the unbaked crust in the pan and bake it directly from the freezer – it has a fresher flavor. Just add about 5 minutes to the baking time.

Easy White Chocolate Cream Cheese Filling
1 1/2 cups white chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened

In a small mixing bowl, beat melted chips and cream. Add cream cheese and beat until smooth. Spread over crust and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Berries, Glaze and Assembly
2 pints fresh berries/fruit (strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, kiwi, pineapple, etc.)
2 tbsp apricot jam or strained raspberry jam
2 tsp water

1. Arrange fruit on top of the pastry cream in the crust. I find it looks best to put the tallest berries in the centre and taper out from there.
2. For the glaze: Combine jam with water then brush over the fruit. This keeps it from drying out and gives the tart a pretty sheen.

The tart is best served immediately but can be kept refrigerated for a few hours or up to a day (the only problem is the fruit juice seeping into the filling and coloring it).

Chocolate Peanut Butter Butter-Tarts

I've been doing some Easter-Egg hunting of my own the past few days. Grocery stores are selling Easter candy at discounts of 50% off or more so I've been scooping up pastel M&M's, foil-wrapped lilliput eggs and Reese's PB bunnies. I'll admit, a few of the PB bunnies were sacrificed in the making of these tarts but it's all for a good cause: dessert!

This recipe was heavily adapted from the recipe for Chocolate Mixed-Nut Pie by Better Homes and Gardens. I have so many 'all-purpose' cookbooks - JOY, Betty Crocker, Gourmet Today, America's Test Kitchen - that I have developed a blind spot for this 3-ring-bound kitchen stand-by. I had forgotten what a wealth of recipes it contained.

Flaky pastry encases a sensory delight of flavors and textures. Melty chunks of Reese's pb cups (in my case, PB bunnies) are suspended in a buttery creamy filling. Salted peanuts provide a nice crunch and add depth to these rich little treats.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Butter-Tarts
Makes 24 | adapted from Better Homes & Gardens

1 batch - Double Crust Pie Dough
3 eggs
1 cup corn syrup
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cups chopped salted peanuts
1 cup coarsely chopped peanut butter cups

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. On a lightly floured surface, roll chilled pastry dough to 1/4" thick. Lightly grease 24 standard sized muffin tins or tart tins. Cut pastry into circles and place into prepared tins, pressing the pastry up the sides slightly.

2. For filling: In a large bowl, beat eggs lightly. Whisk in corn syrup, sugar, butter, vanilla, and salt. Stir in the nuts and the peanut butter cup pieces. Spoon Pour filling into pastry-lined tart tins, filling right to the top. I pur 2 tbsp filling in each tart tin and ended up with 23 tartlets.

3. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until center seems set when gently shaken. Cool on a wire rack. Store in refrigerator and drizzle with melted chocolate and a dollop of sweetened whipped cream to serve, if desired.

Blueberry-Apple Crumble Pie

This rustic looking pie is a flaky pastry shell filled with tart apples, studded with juicy blueberries and covered in a shower of buttery, cinnamony crumbs. I halved the recipe and made this in a 6" spring form pan because I didn't have enough apples. I'm starting to think that maybe I prefer crumb-topped pies to pastry topped ones. I've always been a sucker for streusel/crumb toppings and this one with the pecans in it is a keeper!



Blueberry-Apple Crumble Pie
9" Pie | Gourmet, Nov. 2009

pastry dough:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 stick cold unsalted butter, 1/2" pieces
2 tablespoons cold vegetable shortening
Rounded 1/4 teaspoon salt
3 to 4 tablespoons ice water

crumble topping:
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 stick unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 cup pecans, coarsely chopped

filling:
2 pounds apples (about 5), peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
8 ounces fresh or frozen (not thawed) blueberries
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 stick unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

Pastry:
Blend together flour, butter, shortening, and salt in a bowl with your fingertips or a pastry blender (or pulse in a food processor) just until mixture resembles coarse meal with some roughly pea-size butter lumps. Drizzle 3 tablespoon ice water evenly over mixture and gently stir with a fork (or pulse) until incorporated.

Squeeze a small handful: If dough doesn't hold together, add more ice water, 1/2 tablespoon at a time, stirring until incorporated. Do not overwork dough or pastry will be tough.

Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 4 portions. With heel of your hand, smear each portion once or twice in a forward motion to help distribute fat. Gather all dough together (using a pastry scraper if you have one) and form into a 5-inch disk. If dough is sticky, dust lightly with additional flour. Chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, at least 1 hour.

crumble topping:
Stir together flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl. Blend in butter with your fingertips until large clumps form, then stir in pecans. Chill until ready to use.

fruit filling:
Stir together apples, blueberries, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, salt, and lemon juice in a large bowl.

Assemble pie:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F with rack in lower third.

Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin into a 13-inch round, then fit into pie plate. Trim edge, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang, then fold overhang under and crimp decoratively. Transfer fruit filling to pie shell and dot with butter. Loosely cover with foil and bake until apples droop slightly, about 30 minutes.

Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees F. Sprinkle crumble topping over filling and bake, uncovered, until crumble is browned, filling is bubbling, and apples are tender, 45 minutes to 1 hour more. Cool completely, 2 to 3 hours.

*Dough can be chilled up to 3 days.
*Pie can be made 1 day ahead and kept, loosely covered, at room temperature.

TWD: Soft White Chocolate Cranberry Tartlets

Rachelle of Mommy? I’m Hungry! chose Soft Chocolate and Raspberry Tart on page 354 of Baking: From my home to yours. Check out her blog for the recipe. Or see my adapted version below.

I took quite a few liberties with this week's pick, using Dorie's original recipe as a starting point. I used ground hazelnuts in the sweet tart dough, swapped the chocolate for white chocolate and the raspberries for cranberries. These remind me of Christmas, both in appearance and in taste. Mmm... cranberry hazelnut white chocolate bark. I must make some of that soon. It's already been 3 months since Christmas, which means another 9 to go before I can step back into mass holiday-dessert-baking mode.

I was so happy to see this recipe come along so I could use my new tartlet pans from the dollar store. Surprisingly, there are tons of neat baking things at my dollar store. My 12 tins only cost $3 whereas in a baking supply store they'd probably be $3 each! I'm glad I made these small since they were quite sweet and rich. Definitely yummy but best in small servings. I can see why she used dark chocolate in hers, but no regrets here! This girl loves sugar.



I am posting the recipe since I changed it so much from the original. Just in case you happen to be a white chocolate lover like me. Even though she says to serve them warm, I prefer them cold straight from the fridge.

Soft White Chocolate Cranberry Tart
One 9" Tart | Adapted from Dorie

5 ounces white chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup butter, cut into 4 pieces
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 large egg yolk, room temperature
3/4 cup dried cranberries
1 9-inch shell Sweet Tart Dough with Nuts (below), fully baked and cooled

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Put the tart pan on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat.

Set a heatproof bowl over a pan of gently simmering water, add the chocolate and heat, stirring occasionally until melted. Remove from the heat.

Meanwhile, bring the cream, and butter just to a boil. Pour the cream-butter mixture over the chocolate and let it stand for 30 seconds. Working with a whisk or a rubber spatula, gently stir the liquid into the chocolate-start stirring in the center of the bowl and work your way out in ever-widening circles. When the mixture is smooth, stir in the eggs and yolk. Rap the bowl against the counter to break any bubbles that might have formed.

Scatter the berries over the bottom of the crust, then pour the chocolate ganache over them. Bake the tart for about 30 minutes-the filling should not jiggle if you tap the pan and a knife inserted into the center of the tart should come out a little streaky. Transfer the tart pan to a rack and cool to room temperature before serving.

Serving: There are some people who like this tart ever so slightly warm, but the flavor and texture don't really come into their own until the tart is cooled to room temperature. Serve it cold and it will lose its lovely creaminess. Whatever temperature ends up being your favorite, do serve the tart with whipped cream or creme fraiche.

Sweet Tart Dough with Hazelnuts
one 9-inch crust | Dorie Greenspan

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup ground hazelnuts
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick plus 1 tablespoon (9 tablespoons)
very cold butter, cut small
1 egg yolk

Put the flour, confectioners' sugar and salt in a food processor and pulse a couple of times to combine. Scatter the pieces of butter in and pulse until the butter is coarsely cut in— some pieces the size of oatmeal flakes and some the size of peas. Stir the yolk, just to break it up, and add it a little at a time, pulsing after each addition. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and, very lightly and sparingly, knead the dough just to incorporate any dry ingredients that might have escaped mixing.

Butter a 9" tart pan. Press the dough evenly over the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Don't be too heavy-handed—press the crust in so that the edges of the pieces cling to one another, but not so hard that the crust loses its crumbly texture. Freeze the crust for at least 30 minutes before baking.

Butter the shiny side of a piece of aluminum foil and fit the foil, buttered side down, tightly against the crust. (Since you froze the crust, you can bake it without weights.) Put the tart pan on a baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes at 375 degrees F. Carefully remove the foil. If the crust has puffed, press it down gently with the back of a spoon. Then fully bake the crust: bake for another 8 minutes or so, or until it is firm and golden brown. Transfer the tart pan to a rack and cool the crust to room temperature before filling.

Storing: Well wrapped, the dough can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 2 months. While the fully baked crust can be packed airtight and frozen for up to 2 months, I prefer to freeze the unbaked crust in the pan and bake it directly from the freezer—it has a fresher flavor. Just add about 5 minutes to the baking time.

TWD: Toasted-Coconut Custard Tart

This week's Tuesdays with Dorie is hosted by Beryl of Cinemon Girl who picked the Toasted-Coconut Custard Tart on pages 344 and 345. Thank you Beryl for picking something I wouldn't normally pick on my own and for pushing me out of my baking comfort zone.

For once I didn't change a thing about the recipe. I followed all the directions and ingredients to a T. If you like coconut cream pies, you won't be disappointed by this tart.


Before covering with whipped cream


Coconut Custard, cooking in my dutch oven.