#77 :: Fruit Tarts

I tried out this recipe for the Great American Bake Sale coming up on May 30th. These tarts turned out sooo good that I'm definitely going to make some for the sale! I'm going to try them with other fruits as well....the recipe calls for apple, which I think would be amazing....but we had raspberries right there, and that's what we tried first. Blackberry, strawberry, blueberry....so many choices, and I bet they're all dee-lish!

Ingredients

• 1 sheet puff pastry, thawed
• Sugar, for dusting
• 1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and quartered (*we used raspberries instead)
  
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• Apricot jam
• (*we added some whipped cream topping as well)
  

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Crimp seams of puff pastry together with fingertips. Dust both sides of pastry with sugar. Using a rolling pin, roll pastry in each direction to close seams. Using a sharp pizza cutter (and tracing a small plate) cut out 2 circles of pastry. (*I used a cereal bowl, pressed it onto the puff pastry like a cookie cutter, and I got 4 tarts out of 1 puff pastry sheet). Place pastry circles on a chilled sheet pan and let cool in the refrigerator for a few minutes.

Using a vegetable peeler cut wafer thin apple slices. Put apple slices in lemon-juice-spiked water. (*If you're using berries, no lemon water is needed -- it just keeps the apples from turning brown)

Flip pastry circles over on the sheet pans and poke them with a fork to provide an outlet for steam. Put parchment paper on the pan underneath the pastry circles. Sprinkle pastry with sugar and arrange apple slices on top.

Bake in the middle of the oven for 15 to 20 minutes. Poke the crust; if it feels soft it needs more time in the oven.

Microwave some apricot jam for 30 seconds. Dab (don't brush) the jam on the tarts. Cool tarts at least 4 hours and seal in a resealable plastic bag. Serve at room temperature or heat in the microwave and top with ice cream.

Makes 2 servings.

Recipe from Good Eats on Food Network

Star Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Snack Dinner

Yesterday we had both worked a long day, it was a getting late, and we just didn't feel like messing with cooking.....so we had snack dinner. :) Apple slices with peanut butter, and summer sausage with cheddar cheese on roasted tomato Triscuit crackers. Not exactly gourmet, but it did the trick and we didn't have to cook. It doesn't really count on the blog as a recipe....but we didn't eat fast food!

#30 :: Acorn Squash Apple Puree

**I'm doing 2 days worth of posts to catch up. We've been spending a lot of time in the kitchen!!**

I've seen everyone on Food Network make a sauce, gravy, puree, dressing or some other topping for their meal, so I thought I'd try my hand at it. I kept the meal simple, pork chops seasoned with salt and pepper and a boxed stuffing mix, and used the puree {with some applesauce on the side} to flavor the meal. It was definitely a different taste, but surprisingly good.

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 pounds acorn squash (2 medium to large), halved and seeded
• 3 tablespoons, plus 4 teaspoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/3 cup finely chopped shallots
• 2 Fuji or Gala apples, peeled, cored, and diced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
• 1/4 cup chicken stock or canned low-sodium chicken broth

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the squash halves, cut sides up, in a large baking dish. Place 1 teaspoon of the butter in the center of each squash. Sprinkle the insides lightly with the cinnamon and nutmeg. Add enough water to cover the bottom of the pan by about 1/4-inch (about 1/2 cup), cover tightly with aluminum foil, and roast until the squash is tender, 50 minutes to 1 hour.

Remove the squash from the oven, uncover, and let sit until cool enough to handle. Using a spoon, scoop the flesh from the squash into the bowl of a food processor..

Melt the remaining 3 tablespoons butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. When the butter is foamy, add the shallots and cook, stirring, until soft and fragrant, 45 seconds to 1 minute. Add the apples, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes. Add the stock and cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples are very tender, 8 to 10 minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat and transfer the apple mixture to a food processor with the squash. Puree the mixture on high speed until smooth. Adjust the seasoning, to taste, and serve warm.

Makes 6 servings of puree.

Recipe from The Essence of Emeril on Food Network.

Star Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars