Mixed Berry Tart

I keep seeing beautiful berry tarts and had to try one myself. I used almost the same crust recipe as I did for the heirloom tomato tart, with the addition of a little sugar and vanilla extract. The filling was cream cheese and dash of Half & Half, all topped with a mix of fresh blueberries and raspberries. I'm still working on perfecting the crust but it was decadent and delicious.

MIXED BERRY TART

For the crust:
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 stick (8oz) cold butter
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2-3 Tbsp cold water


For the filling:
1 package (8oz) cream cheese
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 Tbsp Half & Half
Approx 1 1/2 cups of mixed berries I used blueberries and strawberries


For the crust:

- Add the flour to a food processor and pulse until incorporated

- Add the sugar and salt and pulse again

- Chop the butter into 4 chunks and add to the flour mixture. Process until the mixture starts coming together in small, pea-sized shapes

- With the processor running, stream in the vanilla extract and just enough water so that the dough comes together this time I used the whole 3 Tbsp and the dough as a little too wet

- Turn the dough out on counter, form into a flattened disk, cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes

- Return the dough to the work surface, using plenty of flour to make sure it doesn't stick. Roll out the dough to about a quarter of an inch thick and 10-11 inches in diameter. Transfer to a tart pan. I still cannot get this too work. It was worse this time than last. I ended up putting the  dough directly into the tart pan and flattening it out against the bottom and up the sides with my hands. It worked. 

- Top the crust with a sheet of parchment paper, fill with dried beans and return to the fridge for at least another 30 minutes.

- Preheat oven to 350

- Bake the tart with the parchment paper for about 20 minutes. Remove the paper and beans and cook for another 5-10 minutes until the crust is a nice golden brown. Let cool

For the filling:

- In a mini food processor, blend the cream cheese and sugar. Stream in the vanilla extract and half & half and process until perfectly smooth.

- Spread the cream cheese mixture into the cooled shell

- Top with your berries, chill in the fridge, slice and serve

Heirloom Tomato Tart

Recently Jason and I enjoyed an amazing dinner at Ruxbin. If you haven't heard of it, you probably will soon. A fantastic, little out of the way place with some serious cuisine. One of the highlights was my entree, a tomato tart. I've also been eyeing an heirloom tomato tart recipe from Tartlette and finally decided to give the recipe a try. Granted, I had to go out and buy both a tart pan and rolling pin that morning, as many of you know, I don't really bake.

Well, now I'm addicted to making tarts. The final product was beautiful! It needed more time to set than the recipe indicated (I might actually use less liquid next time) and definitely needed salt but I managed to get the crust right and the end product was beautiful. I've included my notes and suggestions in the recipe. It was perfect as a dinner accompaniment as well as several days worth of breakfasts! Next tart project, gruyere and caramelized onion...

Makes one 9-inch tart

Allow plenty of time for the dough prep

For the crust:

1 1/4 cup all purpose flour

1 stick unsalted butter, cold

1/4 tsp salt

2-3 Tbsp ice cold water

For the filling:

About 6 heirloom tomatoes

2 eggs

1 cup milk

2 tsp freshly chopped rosemary

Salt and pepper - go heavier than a pinch!

1/8 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

For the crust:

- Pulse flour in food processor until incorporated

- Chop butter into quarters, add and pulse until the butter resembles small peas This took longer than I anticipated. I was worried at first I had gone too long, but it takes a bit for the butter to get broken down and then form into little pea shapes!

- Add the salt and pulse once more

- Gradually stream in the water until the flour just comes together I probably used about 2 Tbsp, might ad a little more

- Turn out mixture onto work surface, form into a 2 inch thick disk, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 30 minutes apparently this can also be done up to a day ahead of time

- Flour work surface and roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thick, adding more flour as you go if the dough starts to stick. Place dough into tart pan. All of this was very difficult for me! I 9 inch pan might be a little large for this project. The dough kept breaking when I tried to get it in the pan. Eventually I transferred most of it over then patched up the sides with the excess dough.

- Place a piece of parchment paper over the dough, fill with dried beans and refrigerate for another 30 minutes

- Preheat oven to 350. Place tart pan on middle rack and bake for about 15 minutes (with the beans still inside). Remove from oven, let cool and remove beans and parchment paper.

For the filling:

- Slice the tomatoes and lay flat on a couple of sheets of paper towels to absorb excess water.

- In a large bowl, beat the eggs with the milk. Add the rosemary, salt, pepper, and nutmeg and whisk again.

- Pour the mixture into the tart shell and arrange tomato slices throughout. Here, I might not use all of the liquid as the dish ended up being a little "eggier" than I had expected. It also took longer to bake.

- Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes, or until center is barely set. Tart will continue to set as it cools.