Category Archives: Tarts

Key Lime Tartlets Re-revisited

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I am making key lime tartlets for a Gala/fundraiser in a week and wanted to practice. It’s a good thing I did. The meringue never whipped to peaks. I binned the first attempt and made some minor changes to the second, which resulted in perfect, smooth, silky Italian meringue.

I used a kitchen blowtorch to brown the tops. The lime zest incorporated in the filling and lightly dusted on the top added the tartness to balance the meringue.

Key Lime Tartlets

Gluten Free suggestions at the end

INGREDIENTS
SHELL
• 100 g cold butter cut into small cubes
• 200 g all-purpose flour
• 60 g icing sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla
• ¼ tsp salt
• 2 eggs – 1 for the dough and the other 1 reserved for an egg wash (try egg white only for Almond flour.)

FILLING
• zest (grated rind) of 1 lime
• 4 large egg yolks
• 14-ounce can (397g) sweetened condensed milk, (1 1/4 cups)
• 3/4 cup (170g) Key lime juice or lime juice
• 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon lime oil, optional
METHOD
SHELL

  1. Mix butter with sugar until well incorporated 3-5 min
  2. Add salt then vanilla
  3. Add egg and mix 3-5 min – for almond flour: suggest using only the egg white to reduce the moisture in the dough
  4. Stir in flour. Mix by hand until incorporated and forms a thick smooth(ish) sticky dough
  5. Cover with plastic and refrigerate for 30 min
  6. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
  7. Butter tartlet pans, or use non-stick pans
    For AP Flour
    a. Roll dough on floured surface
    b. Cut into circles 1” larger diameter than the mold
    c. Press into molds filling all parts of the mold
    For Almond Flour
    a. Roll dough between parchment paper to about ⅛” thick
    b. Freeze rolled dough still between parchment paper until firm: 20 – 30 minutes
    c. Cut frozen dough to rounds about 1” larger diameter than the mold. Cut all the rounds at once while still frozen. I used an offset spatula to remove the circles from the parchment paper. Keep the spatula clean.
    d. Lay tart dough circles over molds. This allows the dough to thaw slightly and be pressed into the molds and fill all crevices.
  8. Pinch off excess with wet fingers. (Dough is sticky)
  9. Prick holes in bottom and sides of formed dough
  10. Fill tarts with pastry weights (I put beans in mini cupcake papers
  11. Paint edges of the tartlet with the egg wash.
  12. Bake in preheated oven 350 deg F (175 C) for 6-8 min
  13. Remove pastry weights and bake an additional 4-6 minutes to dry the bottoms. Bake until the edges are begin to turn light brown
  14. Immediately remove from pans and cool on a wire rack

FILLING

  1. Whisk the lime zest and egg yolks at high speed of an electric mixer for about 4 minutes. The mixture will lighten in color and thicken somewhat, appearing similar to Hollandaise sauce.
  2. Stir in the sweetened condensed milk, mixing until smooth. Beat at high speed for 3 minutes; the filling will become slightly thicker and gain a bit of volume.
  3. Add the lime juice, stirring just to combine. The mixture will thicken again. Add lime oil to taste.
  4. PIPE the filling into the crust and return the tart (on the baking sheet) to the oven. Bake the tart for 12 to 18 minutes, until it appears set around the edges though still a bit wobbly in the center. The center should read about 145°F on a digital thermometer.
  5. Remove the tart from the oven and cool to room temperature. Refrigerate for several hours before serving.
  6. Once chilled, serve the key lime pies cold with whipped cream, or merengue and a lime slice or zest, if desired.
  7. Store leftover pies in the refrigerator (covered) for up to 1 week. If they last that long!

Notes
Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Up to 1 day in advance, you can prepare the crust ingredients and the filling ingredients separately. Store each covered tightly in the refrigerator until ready to assemble and bake. You can bake the key lime pies and store in the refrigerator for 1 day before serving. Key lime pies freeze well, up to 2–3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.

Gluten Free:
Substitute Almond flour for AP flour or 1:1 Almond and coconut flours
Add 1 Tbl psyllium husk per cup of almond flour.

ITALIAN MERINGUE

INGREDIENTS
• 80g (or 0.4 cup or 6.5 Tbl) granulated sugar
• 30ml (or 1/8 cup) water
• 60g (or ¼ cup) egg whites (about 2 large egg whites)
• 20 g icing sugar

METHOD

  1. Whisk the egg whites into a light and fluffy foam, using an electric (stand) mixer.
  2. Add the icing sugar and continue whipping until you’ve got a glossy stable foam. It should stay in place if you turn the bowl upside down. Set aside.
  3. Add the granulated sugar and water to a pan and bring to a boil. Once all the sugar has dissolved, refrain from stirring. Continue boiling at moderate/high heat while continuously keeping an eye on the temperature.
  4. Once the solution has reached 121°C (250°F), take it from the heat immediately*.
  5. While SLOWLY beating the egg whites, gently pour the hot sugar solution into the whipped egg whites (this is where the stand mixer comes in handy!).
  6. Once all the sugar syrup is in, turn up the speed to high and continue whisking until the foam is lukewarm.
  7. Use the meringue immediately to top whatever it is you want to cover.

NOTES
Italian meringue can be made two days in advance and stored in the fridge until needed (covered with plastic wrap). Store in a piping bag, sealing the tip,

Key Lime Day

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Today should be the last of a long line of rainy days. At least I hope so. I have two days of golf this week, something that hasn’t happened since December.

To celebrate the sun I decided to make some Key Lime Tartlets. I guessed how much tart dough I would need, and was pretty close.

I used all the prepared tart pans that I had and missed by two! Not bad.

I also guessed how much key lime filling would be required and missed it by a country mile. (Which makes me wonder, is a country mile longer that a city or suburb mile?)

If you know (or follow me) you know I am not one to throw away anything, so I made two 6” graham cracker pie crusts to use the excellent left over filling

Once the tart dough rested 30 minutes in the fridge I rolled it, and used a cookie cutter to cut circles about the diameter of each tart pan, plus twice the height. Once pressed into the pan I docked the bottoms with a knife then lined them with parchment paper. It’s easier to line them if you crumple the paper first.

I should have applied the egg was before filling the paper lined cups with beans. I had to unload, egg wash, and replace the paper and beans. Live and learn.

I used Italian merengue to counter the tartness of the key lime. I also added some lime zest to counter the sweetness of the merengue… a never ending wormhole.

The filling was sharp, the shell sweet and melt-in-your-mouth, and the merengue perfect. What more could you ask for?

Key Lime Tartlets

INGREDIENTS

SHELL
• 100 g cold butter cut into small cubes
• 200 g all-purpose flour
• 60 g icing sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla
• ¼ tsp salt
• 2 egg – 1 for the dough and the other 1 reserved for an egg wash

FILLING
• zest (grated rind) of 1 lime
• 4 large egg yolks
• 14-ounce can (397g) sweetened condensed milk, (1 1/4 cups)
• 3/4 cup (170g) Key lime juice or lime juice
• 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon lime oil, optional

METHOD

SHELL

  1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
  2. Mix butter with sugar
  3. Add salt then vanilla
  4. Add egg
  5. Stir in flour. Mix by hand until incorporated
  6. Cover with plastic and refrigerate for 30 min
  7. Butter tartlet pans, or use non-stick pans
  8. Roll dough to about ⅛” thick
  9. Lay over tart mold and press into all crevices
  10. Roll top to cut off excess
  11. Prick holes in bottom and sides of formed dough
  12. Fill tarts with pastry weights (I put beans in a cupcake paper and remove 5 minutes before the end of the bake.)
  13. Paint edges of the tartlet with the egg wash.
  14. Bake in preheated oven 350 deg F (175 C) for 15 min
  15. Immediately remove from pans and cool on a wire rack

FILLING

  1. Whisk the lime zest and egg yolks at high speed of an electric mixer for about 4 minutes. The mixture will lighten in color and thicken somewhat, appearing similar to Hollandaise sauce.
  2. Stir in the sweetened condensed milk, mixing until smooth. Beat at high speed for 3 minutes; the filling will become slightly thicker and gain a bit of volume.
  3. Add the lime juice, stirring just to combine. The mixture will thicken again. Add lime oil to taste.
  4. Pour the filling into the crust and return the tart (on the baking sheet) to the oven. Bake the tart for 18 to 22 minutes, until it appears set around the edges though still a bit wobbly in the center. The center should read about 145°F on a digital thermometer.
  5. Remove the tart from the oven and cool to room temperature. Refrigerate for several hours before serving.
  6. Once chilled, serve the key lime pies cold with whipped cream and a lime slice if desired. Store leftover pies in the refrigerator (covered) for up to 1 week. If they last that long!

Notes
Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Up to 1 day in advance, you can prepare the crust ingredients and the filling ingredients separately. Store each covered tightly in the refrigerator until ready to assemble and bake. Likewise, as noted in set 4, you can bake the key lime pies and store in the refrigerator for 1 day before serving. Key lime pies freeze well, up to 2–3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.

ITALIAN MERINGUE

INGREDIENTS
• 150g (or ¾ cup) granulated sugar
• 60ml (or ¼ cup) water
• 60g (or ¼ cup) egg whites (about 2 large egg whites)

METHOD

  1. In a medium-sized saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Heat over low heat, stirring until the sugar has
    dissolved. Once the sugar has dissolved, turn the heat to medium-high and allow the syrup to come to a boil.
  2. In the meantime, add the egg whites to a medium-sized, heatproof bowl and mix (with a mixer fitted with the
    whisk attachment) until foamy and the whites are almost able to hold soft peaks.
  3. Once the syrup is boiling, clip on a candy (or sugar) thermometer.
  4. Cook until the syrup reaches 116°C/240°F, then take the pan off the heat and slowly drizzle the hot syrup into
    the bowl with the foamy egg whites, mixing continuously to prevent the eggs from scrambling. Don’t pour the
    syrup onto the whisk, or the syrup may splatter against the sides of the bowl (or into your face!). Instead, aim
    for a spot close to the whisk.
  5. Once all the syrup has been added, keep mixing until the bottom of the bowl feels cool to the touch and the
    meringue has cooled down to body temperature.
  6. Use immediately or keep in the fridge (covered) until ready to use. It’s a very stable meringue, so it won’t start
    weeping, leaking or collapsing.

    NOTES
    Italian meringue can be made two days in advance and stored in the fridge until needed (covered with plastic wrap).

Fruit Braided Tarts

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Ok, so I made fruit tarts in braided tart shells. Should the title be Braided Tarts with Fruit, or Fruit Braided Tarts, or Braided Fruit Tarts? Reminds me of Eats, Shoots and Leaves.

Did I fail to mention I had some frozen choux pastry, and as creme diplomat is made with creme patisserie which when piped inside choux and coated with chocolate makes profiteroles and as long as the oven was hot, decided to add some frozen chocolate chip cookies to conserve energy?

QC had the day off and was out with some friends, leaving me home alone, heh, heh, heh. What to do, oh what to do?

There were braided tart shells in the freezer and I recently bought a kiwi and picked an orange from my neighbor’s tree. I promised a couple of friends I would make them some fruit tarts when everything came together and yesterday all the stars aligned.

First freshen the frozen tart shells (notice the braided sides) in the over at 400F for 5-8 minutes, then an additional 5 minutes at 320F.

Peel and cut the kiwi into thin slices and slice the orange and strawberries.

Make the Crème Diplomat and pipe into the cool shells, add the fruit in your best imitation of a pretty pattern. Sprinkle a few blueberries around the other fruit for color.

Serve as soon as possible as the Crème Diplomat will deflate fairly quickly.

A good, quiet “me” day.

Crème Diplomat

INGREDIENTS
• ½c sugar
• ¼c corn starch
• Pinch salt
• 2 c whole milk
• 4 egg yolks
• 2 Tbl butter
• 2 cups heavy cream, cold

METHOD

  1. Whisk eggs and milk together and add to all other ingredients (except vanilla) to a medium saucepan.
  2. Bring to boil whisking constantly
  3. Cook until thickened (it will look lumpy, its ok)
  4. Sieve lumpy mixture into a bowl and add 1 tsp vanilla, mix thoroughly
  5. When incorporated, cover with plastic directly on the cream and cool about an hour.
  6. Whip the cold heavy cream to medium peaks.
  7. Fold a few spoonfuls of the custard into the cream. Gradually add the rest of the custard, being careful to not knock the air out.

Notes

  1. You can make the custard or creme patisserie ahead of time, it will keep for a few days in an airtight container in the fridge. However, I would not add the whipped cream until you were ready to serve it. It is best served immediately.
  2. Mix crème patisserie 1::1 with whipped cream if making crème patisserie in advance,

Chocolat de Couverture Noir

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On a visit to a Restaurant Depot my Q.C. Department convinced me to buy 11 lbs of bulk Chocolat de Couverture Noir. (64% is dark chocolate is not very bitter. I use 73% for dark bitter chocolate.) My question is… what should I make with it?

I am thinking Pain au Chocolat, chocolate croissants, chocolate chip cookies and/or brownies. Note the fluidity on the package. This chocolate is suitable for coating caramel, creams, berries and other confections.

Last year I made an over the top chocolate/orange tart. My neighbor’s orange tree has a abundance of oranges too high up for her to harvest. Hmmm……

Maybe something I made before: Eclairs? Chocolate Babka? Soufflés? Chocolate pudding? (Try the easy home made chocolate pudding recipe.) Chocolate chip scones? Lava Cake? Chocolate Fudge? Oh yes, chocolate fudge!!! (Maybe chocolate/peanut butter fudge, the QC department doesn’t like Chocolate/peanut butter fudge.)

Andy other suggestions?????

Don’t Spoonerize a Curd Tart

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Raspberry Curd Tart

I have been baking a lot of bread recently. With the self-isolation, several of our friends were unable to find bread in the nearly empty supermarkets and as I really like to bake I am giving a lot of bread away – a loaf or two a day. Luckily, I bought an extra 10 lbs of bread flour a couple of weeks ago, along with 5 lbs of AP flour and 4 lbs of sugar.

Today, I am taking a break from bread. I made a raspberry curd filled tart. I really like my chocolate tart with orange drizzle, but saw and adapted the Raspberry Curd to use with my tart shell. Luckily, the curd can be made in advance and refrigerated so today I only had to make the tart shell. (Don’t let me kid you. I also made 2 loaves of white sandwich bread for friends.)

L to R: Dough and Pan, Filled and Formed Shell, Weighted and ready for blind baking
L to R: Baked crust, completed tart, Quality Assurance Samples


INGREDIENTS

Raspberry Curd
• 3 cups raspberries
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp Meyer lemon zest
• 2 Tbsp Meyer lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp water
• 2 large egg yolks
• 2 Tbsp plus 2 tsp cornstarch
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp chilled unsalted butter, diced

Tart Shell
• 100 g cold butter cut into small cubes
• 200 g almond flour (I may increase this by 50g, not sure yet)
• 60 g icing sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla
• ¼ tsp salt
• 2 eggs (100g) Topping

METHOD

  1. For the raspberry curd, combine raspberries, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and water in a saucepan over medium-high heat.
  2. Bring mixture to a boil (about 5 minutes); reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Remove mixture from heat and let stand 5 minutes.
  3. Place in a food processor or blender; process until smooth. Wipe pan clean and strain mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a cleaned pan and discard solids.
  4. Whisk together egg yolks and cornstarch in a small bowl until smooth.
  5. Stir yolk mixture into raspberry mixture; bring to a boil over medium-low heat (about 5 minutes). Be careful, the mixture can burn if heat it so high. If it does, do not scrape the bottom of the pan.
  6. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly, then remove from heat (the mixture should coat the back of a spoon).
  7. Add salt and butter, one piece at a time, stirring until smooth.
  8. Place curd into a medium bowl; cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto the surface of the curd to prevent a skin from forming.
  9. Chill curd in the refrigerator at least 2 hours, or up to 1 week (if making in advance).
  10. For the tart shell: Mix butter with sugar (I break up the chunks of butter by rubbing them into the sugar with my hands)
  11. Add salt then vanilla
  12. Add egg and mix well
  13. Stir in flour. Mix by hand until incorporated. I did this in 3 parts mixing well between each.
  14. Cover with plastic and refrigerate for 30 min until it firms up a bit.
  15. Butter (spray) tartlet pan
  16. Coat hands with flour and press the sticky dough into tart mold
  17. Prick holes in bottom and sides of formed dough
  18. Add pastry weights to the pan
  19. Bake in preheated oven 350o F (175o C) for 17 – 20 min
  20. Remove pastry weights with 5 min left in the bake
  21. Remove pastry shells from pans and let cool on wire rack To assemble tart, spoon raspberry curd into cooled tart shell and spread into an even layer with an offset spatula.
  22. Arrange raspberries over filling in a decorative pattern.
  23. Chill in the refrigerator 2 hours before serving.

A Remiss is as Good as a Re-mile

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I was remiss in not documenting the baking I did for our synagogue’s Oneg (celebration of the joy of Shabbat after Friday night services) a couple of weeks ago. All of the recipes are posted elsewhere. Search this blog for the various key words for more detail.

We were one of three families providing pastries etc for the Oneg. I made Gooey Strawberry Brownies. (Previously I made raspberry brownies so tried strawberry this time.)  Due to the size of the strawberry jammy bits the brownies ended up very moist and “gooey,” which is not a bad thing. Somehow, only half of the brownies made it onto the serving tray, so sadly, the other half had to come home with me.

I also made sweet whipped cream filled, chocolate drizzled profiteroles. I find choux pastries easy to make and freeze well for a last minute snack when invited out, or if friends stop by. I actually saw them online a few weeks ago and decided they would be good to add to my Oneg selection.

There is nothing like a couple of dozen tartlets with cream patisserie filling and blueberry topping. Tartlets and cream patisserie are quick and easy to make, and again the tart shells freeze for future use, if necessary.  It wasn’t necessary to freeze any, they were decimated at the oneg. I like to glaze pastries with apple jelly to add that nice shine. Last year I could not find any apply jelly in the stores, or even anyone who had heard of it, so I made a couple of pints and am still using it.

And finally I decided to make some fig newtons with some of the huge store of figs I have in the cupboard prior to this year’s harvest.

Oh! I almost forgot.  I had some sugar cookies in the freezer so added them to the mix on a whim. A few months ago I froze them in cylinders so I could just cut them into disks and bake them. I used them all up so need to make another batch.

Busy Bakery Day

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Here are some samples of one and two bite pastries I am making for a party of about 200 people. We are meeting tonight for a party progress meeting. I decided to give the group a sample of some of the varieties of desserts I am baking for the event.

 

I have both lemon and mango curd filled profiteroles, cream patisserie filled eclairs and tartlets, vanilla cake with pink icing and raspberry drizzle and vanilla cake with chocolate drizzle. There are mini-raspberry cheesecakes, blueberry and apply mini pie bites, chocolate brownie cups with chocolate mousse and a raspberry drizzle. Some of these were made ahead and frozen until today. The tartlets, eclairs, profiteroles and all icings, drizzles and frostings were made this afternoon.

A productive bakery day!

Guess Who Came to Dinners?

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We just had a weekend guest, and sadly, put her on a plane to return to her home last night. This woman prefers to eat healthy, in moderation and occasionally diet. Boy did she come to the wrong place!

We started with some rugelach. I made apple/cinnamon, chocolate and hand pies
chocolate/blackberry. They are very similar except the for filling.  I added an apple tart, (I got to use my new spiralizer so am happy.) Fran and I had some fruit dumplings from Apple Hill (much like my hand pies but bigger, so I added blueberry, apply and blackberry hand pie/filled rough puff pastry dumplings. For dinner we had my homemade pizza margherita: sweet/salty sauce, home made dough (ala pizza 2 Independent Pizza in Seattle), basil and fresh mozzarella, baked 6 minutes at 600 degrees in my gas grill. I added some garlic bread knots to accompany.  It was so good, I made second one for Sunday night.  Unfortunately, we at all the garlic bread knots, so I made some chocolate mousse with pink whipped cream topping. Oh, we also had a salad.

mousse

RUGELACH

INGREDIENTS

CRUST

  • 16 tablespoons (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 3/4 cup cream cheese, at room temperature (2 T cream cheese = 28g. 3/4 Cup = 12 T, ¾ C = 4oz.)
  • 1/3 cup sour cream
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flourrugelach1

FILLING CINNAMON RAISIN

  • 1/2 cup brown sugarrugelach2
  • 1 cup walnuts, chopped
  • 1/2 cup dried cranberries, raisins, or currants
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon
  • water for brushing dough

DARK CHOCOLATE:

  • 1 T brown sugar
  • 1 Tsp unsweetened cocoa power
  • ¼ Tsp cinnamon (optional)

TOPPING

  • granulated sugar or coarse white sparkling sugar
  • milk or cream

METHOD

  1. To make the dough using a mixer: Beat together the butter, cream cheese, sour cream, and salt until smooth. Add the flour, mixing to make a stiff dough.
  2. Divide the dough into three equal portions. Press each gently into a disk. Make the disks as round as possible, smoothing their edges; this will allow you to roll the disks into a perfectly round circle, making the resulting rugelach more attractive.  (Note how :perfect this dough circle is.) Wrap the disks in plastic, and chill the dough for about 1 hour, until it’s firm but not rock hard. Or chill longer (up to overnight), then warm for about 45 to 60 minutes at room temperature, until the dough softens enough to roll out without cracking.
  3. To make the CINNAMON RAISIN FILLING: process the sugar, walnuts, dried fruit, and cinnamon in a food processor or blender until finely chopped and well combined (but not pasty). Don’t have a food processor? Simply stir together the filling ingredients; your filling will be chunky rather than smooth.
  4. To make the CHOCOLATE FILLING: Whisk together 1 tablespoon brown sugar and 1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder; add 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, if desired. Sprinkle atop rolled-out dough. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup (1 1/2 ounces) mini chocolate chips or chopped semisweet chocolate.
  5. Working with one piece of dough at a time, place it on a generously floured surface. Roll it into a 10″ circle and brush it lightly with water. For a flavorful touch, brush the rolled-out rugelach dough with a thin layer of boiled cider, warmed apple or 

    currant jelly, or puréed fruit preserves, instead of water.

  6. Use your fingers to spread about 1/3 of the filling onto the round, going all the way to the edges and gently patting the filling to help anchor it to the dough.
  7. Using a pizza cutter, baker’s bench knife, or sharp knife, divide the dough into 12 equal wedges. Roll each wedge up, beginning with the wide end and ending with the narrow end. Place the rolls point-side down on a baking sheet; lining the baking sheet with parchment will help with cleanup. Repeat with the remaining two pieces of dough.
  8. Brush the rugelach with milk or cream; and sprinkle with granulated or coarse white sparkling sugar, if desired.
  9. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Refrigerate the rugelach while the oven is preheating.
  10. Bake the rugelach for 25 to 30 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from the oven, and cool right on the pan. Serve warm or at room temperature.
  11. Store leftover rugelach in an airtight container at room temperature for several days. Freeze for longer storage.

APPLE TART

TART SHELLS

 

INGREDIENTS

  • 100 g cold butter cut into small cubes
  • 200 g all-purpose flour
  • 60 g icing sugar (Splenda?)
  • ½ tsp vanilla
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 1 egg (50g)

APPLE FILLING

  • 3 apples (sliced thin or spiralized with skins on)
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 Tsp cinnamon

METHOD

  1. Mix butter with sugar
  2. Add salt then vanilla
  3. Add egg
  4. Stir in flour.
    1. Mix by hand until incorporated
    2. Add 3-5 Tbl water to make dough sticky
  5. Cover with plastic and refrigerate for 30 min
  6. Butter tartlet pans
    1. Roll dough to about ⅛” thick
    2. Lay over tart mold and press into all crevices
    3. Roll top to cut off excess
  7. Prick holes in bottom and sides of formed dough
  8. Add pastry weights to each pan
  9. Bake in preheated oven 350o F (175o C) for 17 min
    1. Remove pastry weights with 5 min left in the bake
    2. Remove pastry shells from pans and let cool on wire rack
  10. Fill cooled tart shell with sliced apples. I put them in a spiral shape but any way will do
  11. Sprinkle sugar and cinnamon over the apples.
  12. Cover exposed edges of tart with aluminum foil to prevent over browning.
  13. Back at 375 F for 20-30 min. When apples have reduced and mixture is bubbling.
  14. Remove from over and cool on a wire rack.

Sweet and Salty Pizza Sauce

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 medium tomatoes, diced
  • 1 can tomato paste
  • 1 Tbsp sugar
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon pepper, freshly ground
  • 2 tablespoons (4 large leaves) fresh basil, coarsely chopped

METHOD

  1. Heat oil in medium saucepan over a medium heat until hot.
  2. Add garlic; cook 30 seconds or until fragrant.
  3. Stir in tomatoes, tomato paste, salt and pepper and cook for 8-10 minutes or until slightly thickened, stirring and mashing tomatoes with potato masher until crushed.
  4. Stir in basil.
  5. Place in small bowl; cool to room temperature This sauce may be made up to 3 days ahead and refrigerated or up to 2 months ahead and frozen.

What The Fig!!

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Well, it finally happened. The figs in our backyard tree are ripe and ready for harvest. To date, we have harvested about 55 pounds (about 25 Kilos) of figs. Let me be clear. That is the first harvest. We probably have 2 or 3 more to go.  Prolific tree, I just wish the apricot and plum trees would take a lesson. I made several pints of fig preserve and several fig newton filling (alone with some homemade fig newtons), fig and brie tarts and froze a few pounds for future consideration.

Picking the figs proved somewhat challenging. It turns out many people are allergic to the sap and/or leaves of the fig tree. As luck would have it, all of us were, some more than others. Soap (Dawn dishwashing detergent) and water and time worked well to remove the itch and rash. It was gone the next day. Next time, long sleeves and gloves.

After the figs were washed, dried and sorted the best were sliced (about ½” thick) and frozen. Some were laid out on parchment lined baking sheets and put in the freezer. Others were sliced and put into zip lock bags and a simple syrup with Fruit Fresh added were frozen. We shall see which method we like better.

Picking Figs

Picking 2

Picking

Frances and I picked the first half of the harvest. Daniel, The Young and Tall, joined us after his work the next day to  help with the high fruit. Rosie, the Supervisor as ever vigilant.Supervisor

 

Washing, Sorting and Processing

The fruit was washed, dried (wet fruit spoils faster) and spread as a single layer on paper towels in the refrigerator for processing the next day (after rash). Note to self: Use gloves on day two also.

The cut figs were boiled to 220oF and either mashed with a potato masher (Frances’ method) or food processed with a couple quick pulses (my method) and canned. I added a couple more pulses for the newton filling, which seemed about right in the final product.

Here are a couple of tips about making the fig newtons. The recipe makes just the right amount of cookie batter vs. filling, try it. After cutting the rolled dough to an 8”x14” sheet, roll it as rectangular and with as straight edges as possible. It will make the cookies look better.  Also, before trying to fold the dough over and pinching shut cut the sheet in half, or ever thirds, crosswise. This makes the soft dough easier to fold smoothly. More also, be bold when folding. Like flipping eggs in a frying pan. Just go for it. If you don’t fold far enough for the un-filled edges to meet, it’s a bear to try to stretch the top layer to meet the bottom to seal.

For the tartlets, be sure to use enough Brie (or other cheese) to fill half the shell. Too little and the cheese does not add enough flavor. You can always add a piece of cheese to the top to compensate. I also sprinkled the tartlets with a little flaked sea salt to offset the fig sweetness.

Homemade Fig Newtons – HGTV

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 pint fresh or preserved figs or 12 ounces dried figs
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 stick butter
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 tablespoons orange juice

If you are using:

  • Fresh figs: Remove stems and boil figs with a cinnamon stick and 2 cups of sugar in 1 cup of water for 45 minutes. Drain and cool.
  • Dried figs: In a bowl, pour boiling water over figs (stems removed) and let rest 10 minutes. Drain all but 2 tablespoons water and stir in 2 tablespoons corn syrup + ¼ teaspoon cinnamon.
  • Preserved figs: Drain syrup.

METHOD

  1. Puree figs in food processor until a thick paste forms (if too thick or thin to spread evenly, add a little water or flour until spreadable consistency is reached).
  2. Combine flour, baking powder and salt together and set aside.
  3. Cream butter and sugar in a mixing bowl.
  4. Add egg and vanilla, mix until smooth
  5. Add orange juice and combined dry ingredients to bowl and mix until dough forms.
  6. Optional: for dough into a flat thick disk and chill to set butter and make it easier to roll and fold.
  7. Roll dough out on a floured surface into a 8”x14” rectangle about ¼” thick.
  8. Cut rectangle in half lengthwise.
  9. Spread fig paste onto half of each rectangle, lengthwise.
  10. Cut the rectangle in half crosswise, or even thirds to facilitate folding.
  11. Fold dough in half lengthwise to cover fig paste and pinch edges to seal.
  12. Slide each newton log onto a parchment lined baking sheet.
  13. Bake 25 minutes at 350 degrees until crust begins to brown.
  14. Slice into cookie-sized segments and cool. Slice while warm to reducing flaking.

More Hookers! NYT Fake News! Sad!

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A couple of weeks ago, while reading the NYT online I saw this recipe for a Chocolate/Salted Caramel tart. I thought, how could you go wrong with this combination? I mean, salted caramel, chocolate and hookers (tarts), plus wanting to support the poor failing NYT! I planned on making this the first weekend my crack QC/Taster panel was back home. Tada!!

nyt-revenue-report.jpg

Unsurprisingly, the recipe posted in the successful, reliable and accurate NYT made anBroken Baked Tart Shell excellent tart. I made two error with this pastry. First I removed it from the tart pan too soon. The shell was still very fragile and I put a thumb through the side.

Repaired Filled Tart Close Up

 

I used a little foil to dam the flow of caramel and chocolate, plus I tipped it away from the breach so there is a thinner layer on that side of the tart. SAD!

 

I also poured the chocolate ganache when it was a little too thick. That may have helped plug the leak in the damn dam, but did not have the nice smooth, shiny top I was looking for. Finished Tart I also added some white chocolate ganache in a spiral and cut it through with a clean knife to make the star like pattern.

 

 

Unbaked Tart Shell
Ready for Blind Baking
Baked Tart Shell

Hover your mouse over these three pictures to see the caption.

Anyway, here is the recipe. I followed it pretty closely and really wouldn’t change anything, except adding the white chocolate starburst. Oh, I did use sour cream instead of creme fraiche. Any notes are in red below.

INGREDIENTS

  • FOR THE CHOCOLATE DOUGH:
    • ½ cup (1 stick) salted butter, at room temperature
    • ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar
    • ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa
    • 1 large egg yolk
    • ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
    • 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
    • Optional: water, a tablespoon at a time until the dough is pliable.
  • FOR THE CARAMEL FILLING:
    • 2 cups sugar
    • ½ cup water
    • ¼ cup corn syrup
    • ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
    • ½ cup heavy cream
    • 2 tablespoons creme fraiche or sour cream
    • Pinch of salt
  • FOR THE CHOCOLATE GLAZE:
    • 3 ½ ounces extra-bittersweet chocolate (70 to 85%), chopped
    • ½ cup heavy cream
    • Sea salt

PREPARATION

  1. Prepare chocolate dough: In bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter, confectioners’ sugar and cocoa. Beat until smooth. Add egg yolk and vanilla, and beat until blended.
  2. Sift flour into dough mixture. Beat on low speed until combined. (Note: next time I will add a little water here to make the dough a little more pliable. I will also rest in in the fridge for 20-30 minutes.) Press the dough into the bottom and up the sides of a 10-inch tart pan. (You can use a 9-inch pan, but the crust will be thicker and the caramel may take longer to set in step 4.)
  3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line tart with foil, and fill with dried beans, rice or pie weights. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove foil and weights, and bake until pastry is dry and set, another 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. The shell is fragile. Be sure to wait until it is cool before handling.
  4. Prepare caramel filling: In a large saucepan, bring sugar, water and corn syrup to a boil. Stir or swirl the pan occasionally, until mixture is a medium amber color, about 12 minutes. Remove from the heat. Caramel will continue to cook and darken off of the heat. Carefully but quickly whisk in the butter, cream, creme fraiche and salt until smooth (mixture will bubble up). Pour hot caramel into tart, and allow to cool and set, at least 1 hour.
  5. Prepare chocolate glaze: Place chocolate in a bowl. In a small saucepan, bring cream to a boil. Pour hot cream over chocolate and whisk until chocolate has melted and mixture is smooth. Pour glaze over tart, tilting tart for even coverage. (At this point, I piped a spiral of white chocolate ganache on the tart and used a butter knife to cut through the ganache to make the starburst design.) Refrigerate until tart is set, at least one hour, then sprinkle with a few granules of sea salt. Keep refrigerated until serving.