Ingredient: cornstarch

Strawberry Love Notes

No sooner is Christmas behind us than the next ‘special’ event is coming up fast, Valentine’s Day. It isn’t a true holiday, but it sure gets treated like one. Most every mainstream holiday has some candy or treat representing it. Christmas has candy canes, Halloween has candy corn, and Valentine’s Day has chocolate and strawberries.

There’s also a lot more romantic history to strawberries than meets the eye. Our favorite red berry dates back to Ancient Rome where it was considered the symbol of Venus, the goddess of love, because of its bright red color and intoxicating taste. The fruit looks so alluring in fact, that strawberries were carved into church altars and cathedral pillars in medieval times to represent perfection. Legend has it that when two people split a strawberry, they’ll fall in love.

Strawberries are one of nature’s true pleasures; they do not contain much sugar, but they have a sweet and wonderful taste, so they can be enjoyed without any guilt!

Brion & I have never felt the need to give gifts on ‘occasions’ but rather just a card with a loving and sincere verse. As we grow older, it comes clearer every day, the special privilege it is to simply have each other to share life with. I thought these little strawberry love notes were fitting for a Valentine blog.

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 Strawberry Love Notes
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Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword strawberry love notes
Servings
Ingredients
Pastry
Strawberry Filling
Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword strawberry love notes
Servings
Ingredients
Pastry
Strawberry Filling
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Instructions
Pastry
  1. In a bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder & salt. Cut in shortening with a pastry blender or your finger tips. In a 1/2 cup measure, place the beaten egg & vinegar then add enough ice water to fill measuring cup. Make a well in flour mixture & add wet ingredients. Mix with a fork until combined into a pastry dough. Chill until filling is ready.
Filling
  1. In a bowl, combine strawberries, sugar, cornstarch & vanilla. Set aside.
Assembly
  1. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough until it is about 1/8-inch thick. Open a 4 x 51/2-inch paper envelope & use as a pattern. Reduce the pattern to make a smaller envelope if desired. Cut pastry into 6 envelopes & 12 small heart shaped cut outs.
  2. Fill pastry with strawberry filling, but not on the back flap. Following the folds of the paper envelope, fold the cut out pastry, leaving the upper flap open.
  3. Preheat oven to 375 F.
  4. Place a couple of heart shaped cut outs on folded edges of the pastry envelope. Place pastries on parchment lined baking sheet. Brush with egg wash then sprinkle with sanding sugar.
  5. Bake pastries for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned. Do not remove from baking sheet until completely cooled.
Recipe Notes
  • I used an AIR-BAKE pan so the tops would not overbake by the time the bottom was browned.

Shortbread Christmas Trees

Years and years ago, the Canada Cornstarch company printed a four-ingredient recipe for shortbread on the side of a cornstarch box and the rest is history.

Here in Canada, shortbread is in our DNA. This beloved cookie is simplicity personified. If the holidays had their own taste, I’m pretty sure it would be a shortbread cookie.

Over 40 years ago a Canadian company, by the name of Mary Macleod’s Shortbread was opened in Toronto, Canada. Mary, a homemaker and fantastic baker who took her love of this cookie and created Canada’s first shortbread-only bakery.

Her shop was an instant hit when she first opened its doors – she’d bake until midnight, and her goods would be sold out by noon the next day. Mary’s business grew and expanded, and her loyal customers followed her everywhere, but, to this day, the company crafts small-batch, all-butter shortbreads, the best butter being the key.

Mary Macleod’s Shortbread became synonymous with the Christmas season. Many people have made shortbread part of their holiday and family traditions.

Shortbread is undoubtedly one of the best cookies, but it’s without question that it all comes down to the butter. A good shortbread cookie can be transformed into the stuff of  dreams by placing freshly baked shortbread into a tin, store it in the back of your pantry, somewhere cool, and forget it  for a few months. You’ll be amazed at the flavor when it comes time to eat it.

So here we are … the famous Canada cornstarch shortbread cookies!

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 Shortbread Christmas Trees
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Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword shortbread Christmas trees
Servings
Ingredients
Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword shortbread Christmas trees
Servings
Ingredients
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Instructions
  1. In a bowl, sift together cornstarch, powdered sugar & flour. Blend in butter & flavoring with a spoon, mixing until a soft, smooth dough forms. If dough is too soft to handle, cover & chill about 1 hour.
  2. Between 2 sheets of parchment paper, roll dough out into a rectangle about 12" x 7" & 1/2-inch thickness. Make 7 strips on the longest side & 6 strips on the short side. Transfer to ungreased baking sheets spacing 1 1/2-inches apart. Place baking sheets in refrigerator & chill 30 minutes. Halfway through preheat oven to 300 F.
  3. Bake for about 20 minutes or until edges are just barely browned.
  4. When shortbread is cooled, decorate with icing & sprinkles to create Christmas tree design.
Recipe Notes
  • The almond flavor is optional but I think it adds a nice touch.

Krispy Chocolate ‘Eyeballs’/ Halloween Brownie Bites

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

While trick-or-treating has been a tried and true modern Halloween tradition, historians say the origins of kids begging their neighbors for food may date back to ancient Celtic celebrations or even a long-lost Christmas custom. Halloween customs, such as wearing disguises to ward off ghosts and offering food to appease malevolent spirits, were brought to Canada in the mid-to-late 1800s by Irish and Scottish immigrants. North America’s first recorded instance of dressing in disguise on Halloween was in Vancouver, British Columbia, in 1898, while the first recorded use of the term trick or treat was in Lethbridge, Alberta, in 1927.

Every Halloween, children on the hunt for candy dress up in costumes, knock on doors and ask homeowners the infamous question: ‘Trick or Treat?’

Lethbridge historian Belinda Crowson said research has confirmed the term ‘Trick or Treat’ was first documented in the Lethbridge Herald on Nov. 4. 1927.

Hallowe’en provided an opportunity for real strenuous fun. No real damage was done except to the temper of some who had to hunt for wagon wheels, gates, wagons, barrels, etc., much of which decorated the front street. The youthful tormentors were at back door and front demanding edible plunder by the word ‘trick or treat’ to which the homeowners gladly responded and sent the robbers away rejoicing.

Crowson says Oct. 31 in Lethbridge used to be a big night of pranks, saying kids would take part in ‘gate night’ where they’d remove gates from yards and hide them around the city. The occasional outhouse was also moved on Halloween night, sometimes onto a streetcar track for it to be pushed down the route by the unknowing driver.

Alberta’s known for many things: the Rocky Mountains, the oil industry, the Calgary Stampede. But you wouldn’t think that it’s also home to one of the most beloved Halloween traditions, that is, trick-or-treating.

Having lived in Lethbridge years ago, for about 25 years, I was not aware that the term trick or treat had originated there until I stumbled on it when I was doing some research … who knew!!

Nevertheless, Halloween has rolled around again so here’s a few treats to enjoy.

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 Krispy Chocolate 'Eyeballs'/ Halloween Brownie Bites
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Course dessert
Keyword krispy chocolate 'eyeballs'/ Halloween brownie bites
Servings
Ingredients
Shortbread Crumbs for 'Eyeballs'
Caramel / Chocolate & Rice Crispies
Halloween Brownie Bites
Cheesecake Layer
Course dessert
Keyword krispy chocolate 'eyeballs'/ Halloween brownie bites
Servings
Ingredients
Shortbread Crumbs for 'Eyeballs'
Caramel / Chocolate & Rice Crispies
Halloween Brownie Bites
Cheesecake Layer
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Instructions
Shortbread Crumbs
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 9-inch baking pan with parchment paper.
  2. In a bowl, cream together the butter & sugar until light and fluffy. Add the flour; using your fingers, work together to a crumbly but moist dough. Place mixture in baking pan and press down with the back of a spoon until firm and smooth. Bake shortbread until cooked but not browned, about 12 minutes. Remove from oven, lift out of pan with parchment paper & cool. When cooled, break into pieces & place in a food processor. Pulse to create shortbread crumbs. Set aside.
Caramel / Chocolate
  1. Place a heavy bottomed, non-stick pot, over a larger pot of boiling water. To the top pot add condensed milk, butter & brown sugar. Stir until combined, bring the mixture to a gentle boil, stirring continuously for a full 5 minutes. Add the milk & white chocolate & continue stirring until melted.
  2. Turn off heat under the boiling water. To the caramel/chocolate add shortbread crumbs & rice crispy cereal. With a rubber spatula, combine mixture.
  3. Keeping the pot over the hot water so the mixture doesn't harden to fast, scoop into small balls to form 'eyeballs. Place on a parchment paper lined tray. The scoop I used made about 44 balls. Press candy eyeballs into chocolate balls. If they aren't sticking well, dip them into a bit of white corn syrup first.
Halloween Brownie Bites
  1. Preheat oven to 325 F. Line 30 mini cupcake tins with paper liners.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch & salt. Set aside.
  3. Using a mixer, beat sugar & eggs on high speed for 5 minutes, until it becomes light & pale in color. Melt the butter & add it along with oil & vanilla. Mix on low until combined. Slowly add dry ingredients, continuing to mix on low speed until combined. Put aside about a 1/4 of a cup of the brownie batter to use for decorating. Place a small scoop of brownie batter in each of the mini muffin cups.
Cheesecake Layer
  1. In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar & vanilla extract on high speed for 1 minute. Add the orange food gel & mix until desired color. Then add the egg & mix on low speed. Place a Tbsp of cheesecake batter on top of the brownie batter. Add the 1 1/2 Tbsp HOT water to the remaining 1/4 cup of brownie batter & whisk until combined.
  2. Drizzle the brownie batter over the cheesecake batter in 2 circles (per brownie). With a toothpick draw lines from the center to the outside edge, creating a spider web effect.
  3. Bake for about 20 minutes or until not a lot of batter remains on a toothpick when tested. Cool on a cooling rack completely. Decorate with Halloween spiders, cats, ladybugs etc. These are nice when wrapped in foil & chilled overnight.

Sweet & Sour Cherry Pastries

There are two basic types of cherries grown in North America: sweet and sour. Sour cherries are also known as tart, pie cherries, or red cherries.

Cherries are not native to North America, in fact both the sweet and sour varieties were brought to Canada and the U.S. in the 1600s by French and English settlers. The plants, especially the sour varieties, adapted well to our climate.
Sour cherries are a hardier plant than the sweet variety and are well-suited to growing in slightly cooler climates. Commercial production didn’t begin here until the 1800s. 

This recipe is made with sour cherries, so it has that sweet and sour ‘thing’ going on that makes it so good! Homemade sour cherry pie filling is perfect for all kinds of baked goods, such as crisp, puff pastries, pies, galettes, as a cake filling or by itself with a scoop of ice cream.

You can use fresh or frozen sour cherries. I love using frozen cherries personally, because I’ve already pitted them, but this recipe is great with fresh cherries too.

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 Sweet & Sour Cherry Pastries
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Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword sour cherry puff pastries
Servings
Ingredients
Sour Cherry Filling
Pastry
Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword sour cherry puff pastries
Servings
Ingredients
Sour Cherry Filling
Pastry
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Instructions
Sour Cherry Filling
  1. In a saucepan, whisk together sugar, cornstarch & salt. Add juice (water) & stir to thoroughly combine. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently. Simmer until thickened, about 2 minutes; immediately remove from heat. Gradually fold in cherries; cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally.
Assembly & Baking
  1. Preheat oven to 400 F. Line two large baking sheets with baking paper. Roll the thawed puff pastry out on a surface lightly dusted with icing sugar or flour into a large square.
  2. Cut into 2 1/2-inch squares, using a sharp knife or a pizza cutter; cut about 1-inch into each corner. Drop a tablespoon of the sour cherry filling in the center of each puff pastry square.
  3. Brush the pastry with beaten egg then fold one corner into the center, allowing for a slight overlap. Repeat with the other corners to make a windmill shape. Slightly pinch corners together if needed.
  4. Sprinkle with coarse sanding sugar and bake until they are golden and firm (about 12-15 minutes) where they have puffed up on the sides. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Recipe Notes
  • Cut pastry squares as big or small as you wish.

Grated Shortbread Bars w/ Saskatoon Berry Filling

Ever thought of grating your shortbread dough? Perhaps frilly doesn’t quite capture these bars. Airy doesn’t quite fit either, but compared to other shortbread I’ve made, that’s exactly what they are. You see, instead of the dense texture associated with many recipes for shortbread bars, these are light (but no less buttery) because you shred the frozen dough on the coarse holes of a grater before baking. The final product is almost chewy, with an open-crumb texture, something that you wouldn’t get if you just rolled the dough. By avoiding the use of pressure, the dough bakes with all the air pockets between the grated pieces, melding into an almost fluffy result which crumbles and melts in your mouth. The glue for the two layers is the saskatoon berry filling.

Here on the Canadian prairies we have a native berry called a ‘Saskatoon’. These berries are very special …. the kind of special that only comes once a year. Saskatoon berries look much like blueberries, but in fact are part of the rose family which includes apples, cherries, plums and of course roses. Trying to explain their flavor to anyone who has never tasted them is difficult and elusive. They’re sweet, dense, rich, seedy, slightly blueberryish, more almondish, a bit apple-y, dusky and deep. Like I said …. difficult to explain!

At this time of the year when these little gems are available, I always like to make numerous things with them as they work well in either sweet or savory applications. They certainly make a nice filling for these shortbread bars.

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 Grated Shortbread Bars w/ Saskatoon Berry filling
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Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword grated shortbread bars w/ saskatoon berry filling
Servings
BARS
Ingredients
Saskatoon Berry Filling
Shortbread Crust
Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword grated shortbread bars w/ saskatoon berry filling
Servings
BARS
Ingredients
Saskatoon Berry Filling
Shortbread Crust
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Instructions
Filling
  1. In a saucepan, combine berries & water & simmer for 10 minutes over low heat. In a separate bowl, mix sugar & cornstarch; add to berries & combine. Stir in lemon juice & vanilla; simmer until mixture slightly thickens. Set aside to cool.
Shortbread Crust
  1. In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, sugar, cardamom & salt. Using a pastry blender or a fork, cut in butter & lemon zest. Mix ONLY until combined, divide in half & wrap each piece in plastic wrap. Place in freezer until slightly frozen.
  2. Preheat oven to 350 F.
  3. Remove one ball of dough from the freezer. Using the large hole side of a 4 sided grater, grate dough into a 4 1/2" x 14" baking pan. Pat the dough but don't press it, so it gets evenly spread in the pan.
  4. Carefully place the saskatoon filling evenly over the crust. Grate remaining ball of dough & carefully spread on top.
  5. Bake for 40 minutes or until shortbread is golden. Cool to room temperature on rack. Cut into 14 bars. Dust with powdered sugar if desired.
Recipe Notes
  • I found that if I placed the pan of bars in the freezer for about an hour, I was able to cut cleaner slices.

Rhubarb Cheesecake

I guess I’ll have to take the blame for Brion’s love of dessert. When we were first married years ago, he really didn’t care much about sweets. I, on the other hand, had grown up in a German family where every meal was finished with something sweet. It didn’t have to consist of anything more than a dish of vanilla pudding, but it was sweet and that’s what mattered. Funny how something like that can become so ingrained in your life. Of course, over time Brion has come to like dessert as much as I do, not really a good thing now that we are getting older … hmmm!

But I need to explain today’s decadent blog dessert. I just happens, we are celebrating Brion’s birthday so we are pulling out all the stops and having cheesecake! Of course, some of it will probably end up in the freezer but that works to.

Brion and I have never been much on giving each other ‘gifts’ for special occasions. Our time spent together ‘just living’, whether its at home or on a vacation has always been the best gift. Throughout our married life Brion has always gone above and beyond to look after us. I’m grateful to have the privilege of such a loving and caring husband.

So here we are, celebrating you, my love with rhubarb cheesecake and all the trimmings. Life is good!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY WITH LOVE!

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 Rhubarb Cheesecake
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Rating: 5
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Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword rhubarb cheesecake
Servings
Ingredients
Candied Rhubarb Curls
Rhubarb Layer
Cheesecake Layer
Crust/Crumb Layer
Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword rhubarb cheesecake
Servings
Ingredients
Candied Rhubarb Curls
Rhubarb Layer
Cheesecake Layer
Crust/Crumb Layer
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Instructions
Candied Rhubarb Curls
  1. Make the simple syrup, combining the sugar & water in a small pot and heating until dissolved. Let the syrup cool to room temperature, add gel food coloring stirring to combine. Using a paring knife (or try a vegetable peeler), slice long, thin strips of rhubarb from the outer stalk. Soak the ribbons in the cooled simple syrup for about 5 minutes.
  2. Preheat the oven to 200 F. Line or lightly grease a baking sheet. Lay each ribbon on the baking sheet. Bake until the ribbons have dried out. Note: they will still be sticky and flexible from the heat. If you want to make curls, work with one or two ribbons at a time so the remaining ribbons can stay soft in the oven. Wrap each ribbon loosely around skewers or the handles of cooking utensils, and let dry for around 10 minutes before gently sliding the curled ribbons off.
Rhubarb Layer
  1. Cook rhubarb, sugar & water. Simmer for 8 minutes over medium heat. Add in the cornstarch & cook 2 more minutes. Set aside to cool.
Cheesecake Layer
  1. Beat together the cream cheese with icing sugar until smooth then add eggs. Try not to overmix at this point. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Crust/Crumb Layer
  1. Line a 9-inch springform pan with foil paper. Crumble together butter, flour, oats, brown sugar & salt. Add two thirds of the mixture to springform pan & press firmly. Add walnuts to the remaining crumbs & set aside.
Assembly
  1. If using a silver springform pan, bake at 325 F. If using a dark nonstick springform pan, bake at 300 F. Bake bottom layer of crumbs for 10 minutes. Remove from oven, pour cheesecake mixture over the crust & spread with a spoon, being careful not to disturb the crust layer too much.
  2. Spread the rhubarb mixture on top of the cheesecake.
  3. Crumble the remaining crust/crumb mixture evenly over the top & lightly press down.
  4. Bake until topping is golden brown & cheesecake is set, about 50 minutes.
  5. Cool completely, then decorate with fresh strawberries, rhubarb curls, chocolate malt balls & silver sugar pearls or as you wish.
Recipe Notes
  • You will have extra candied rhubarb to nibble on!

Sweet & Sour Pineapple Chicken Balls

Chicken balls aren’t authentic Chinese food but they were probably inspired by Chinese sweet and sour pork. The pork is replaced with chicken, it’s battered instead of breaded and the sauce is sweeter but its in the same ball park. These sweet and sour pineapple chicken balls are a type of modern Chinese food served in Canada, Ireland, United States and the UK as a staple of Chinese take-out. Due to their vast popularity among the masses, they have become linked unwilling to Chinese cuisine, for better or worse. They are largely unheard of in China, depending on the recipe and referred name.

Here in Canada, in our province of Alberta, many of the Chinese dishes that are served in small-town Chinese restaurants have a distinctly Canadian twist. Chinese Canadian food evolved over the decades and has developed into a its own unique cuisine. Some dishes that are unique to Canada and Alberta include ginger beef, cabbage chow mein & sweet and sour chicken balls. Across Canada, Chinese Canadian food has evolved from recipes that were created using the ingredients that were available to the restauranteurs decades ago.

The chicken balls we prefer are dipped in a light batter then baked in the oven as opposed to deep frying them. Brion & I enjoy them served over rice with the tangy pineapple sauce.

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 Sweet & Sour Pineapple Chicken Balls
Votes: 2
Rating: 5
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Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Keyword sweet & sour pineapple chicken balls
Servings
Ingredients
Chicken
Chicken Batter
Pineapple Sauce
Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Keyword sweet & sour pineapple chicken balls
Servings
Ingredients
Chicken
Chicken Batter
Pineapple Sauce
Votes: 2
Rating: 5
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Instructions
Chicken
  1. Preheat oven to 400 F. In a food processor, chop chicken meat with seasoning, JUST until it is a roughly ground texture. Divide into 12-16 portions. Wet hands & roll into balls. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Do not overbake. Remove from oven & cool slightly on paper towels until batter is ready.
Sauce
  1. In a medium saucepan, combine brown sugar & cornstarch. Stir in pineapple with juice, Zesty Italian dressing, (soy sauce), & minced garlic. Cook & stir over low heat until thickened. Set aside & keep warm.
Batter
  1. In a bowl, combine all batter ingredients; beat until smooth. Add chicken balls; stir until covered well with batter.
Baking or Frying
  1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper & place a wire cooling rack over it. Lift chicken balls out of batter with a fork & place on wire rack. Bake at 400 F. for about 10-15 minutes. Remove from oven to a serving plate. Alternately, you could cook battered chicken on a griddle with oil or deep fry it in a pot of oil.
Serving
  1. When chicken balls are cooked in your preferred choice; pour pineapple sauce over them & serve with steamed rice.

Pineapple Meringue Tarts

There’s just something incredibly refreshing about pineapple tarts with their tangy, bright, acidic flavor nestled in shortbread crusts. Adding meringue puts a tropical twist on the classic meringue pie making them a perfect summer treat.

When it comes to making meringue, simple ingredients and instructions can lull you into thinking preparation is quick and easy. Make it once under the wrong conditions, however, and you may quickly change your mind.

Meringue is temperamental. Getting it right can be a tricky process. Weeping meringues aren’t very pretty. The meringue pulls back from the crust, moisture beads on the topping, and a clear liquid forms below the crust. It doesn’t hurt the pie but it’s not presentable.

Years ago, when I worked in the commercial food industry, I started using the idea of adding cornstarch to meringue to help stabilize it. Cornstarch is especially helpful in hot, humid weather when a meringue is most likely to absorb extra moisture.

The science behind this ‘secret ingredient‘ is that cornstarch is composed of long molecules that it is believed insert themselves between egg white proteins to prevent them from clotting too much while meringue is baking. Corn starch molecules also provide more hold for meringue. It will be easier to cut and is less likely to weep.

Brion & I are not crazy about meringue but do enjoy it for a treat once in a while.

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 Pineapple Meringue Tarts
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Rating: 5
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Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword pineapple meringue tarts
Servings
Ingredients
Shortbread Crust
Pineapple Filling
Meringue
Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword pineapple meringue tarts
Servings
Ingredients
Shortbread Crust
Pineapple Filling
Meringue
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Instructions
Shortbread Crust
  1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
  2. In a bowl combine butter & sugar; beat until light & fluffy. In another bowl whisk together flour & baking powder; add to butter/sugar mixture. Blend together. Divide pastry between 6 individual tart pans. Using your fingertips, evenly press the dough into pans. Place on a baking sheet & blind bake for 10 minutes or until golden. Remove from oven & allow to cool.
Pineapple Filling
  1. In a saucepan, combine cornstarch & sugar. Gradually add water, stirring until mixture is smooth. Add lemon zest & undrained pineapple. Stir constantly over medium heat until mixture starts to boil. Reduce heat, boil 2 minutes while continuing to stir. Remove from heat, quickly stir in butter & egg yolks blending well. Allow mixture to cool to room temperature.
Meringue
  1. In a small saucepan, combine water & cornstarch. Heat & stir until it boils & thickens. Cool thoroughly.
  2. Beat egg whites & salt until a stiff froth. Add sugar gradually, beating until stiff & sugar is dissolved. Add vanilla & cornstarch mixture. Beat until blended & stiff.
Assembly
  1. Divide pineapple filling between tart shells. Pipe meringue over tarts sealing to edges. If not sealed well, meringue will shrink when cool. Bake in 350 F. oven about 10 minutes until golden. Cool away from drafts.

Berry Custard Tart

Glazed fresh fruit tart looks so elegant and summer-ish. They are the perfect dessert, whether your meal is casual or formal. In some ways, I guess its a version of a fruit pizza.

Apart from the fresh fruit and glaze, pastry cream adds a nice base to the tart. A custard pudding hybrid, pastry cream is used for ‘filling’, in the cold form, not as a pudding. Widely used to fill desserts like napoleons, cakes, cream puffs, tarts, etc.

To define, pastry cream is basically custard thickened with cornstarch and has a higher stability as compared to custard puddings which use just eggs to achieve their creamy texture. Vanilla is the classic flavor because it has to complete other flavors of the dessert. Pure vanilla is always best as the artificial flavorings add bitter taste profiles. In addition, some alcoholic desserts use pastry cream mixed with rum.

This tart has a layer of vanilla pastry cream, topped with raspberries and blueberries then brushed with an apricot glaze.

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 Berry Custard Tart
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Course dessert
Cuisine American, French
Keyword berry custard tart
Servings
Ingredients
Pastry Cream
Pastry & Fruit
Apricot Glaze
Course dessert
Cuisine American, French
Keyword berry custard tart
Servings
Ingredients
Pastry Cream
Pastry & Fruit
Apricot Glaze
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Instructions
Pastry Cream
  1. In a heavy saucepan, stir together the milk & 1/4 cup sugar. Bring to a boil over medium heat.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks & egg. Stir together the remaining sugar & cornstarch; then stir them into the egg until smooth. When the milk comes to a boil, drizzle it into the bowl in a thin stream while mixing so that you don't cook the eggs. Return the mixture to the saucepan; slowly bring to a boil, stirring constantly so the eggs don't curdle or scorch on the bottom.
  3. When the mixture comes to a boil & thickens, remove from the heat. Stir the butter & vanilla, mixing until the butter is completely blended in. Pour into a heat proof container & place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until chilled then beat until smooth with an electric mixer before using.
Other Prep Work
  1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
  2. Line an oblong tart pan with thawed puff pastry. The short ends of the pastry should be even with the bottom of the pan but the long sides should come up to the top of pan sides. With a sharp knife, score the long sides where the sides meet the bottom of pan. Do not cut all the way through. Pierce the center of the pastry with a fork. Whisk together the egg and milk. Brush the edges of the pastry shell with the egg wash.
  3. Bake the pastry shell for 15-20 minutes or until puffed and golden brown. Remove to a rack to cool completely. If needed, press the center down lightly to create an indentation. Cool while preparing filling.
  4. Rinse & carefully dry fruit on paper towels. In a small blender, puree apricot preserves with water or liqueur until smooth.
Assembly
  1. Place smooth pastry cream in a piping bag with a large flat tip. Carefully pipe pastry cream in long strips to cover the bottom ONLY of the puff pastry shell.
  2. Arrange a row of raspberries down both sides of the tart; close to the edge & close to each other. Using a long straight edge helps to place the fruit in an even line.
  3. To 1/3 of the apricot glaze add some red food coloring to help accent the natural color of the raspberries. Apply a couple of light coats of the glaze carefully to the raspberries.
  4. Fill the center of the area with blueberries, being careful to distribute evenly in rows. Using the remainder of the un-colored apricot glaze, give several light coats to blueberries. Chill until ready to serve.

Mandarin Butterfly Cookie Bites

Its probably a bit too early for butterflies in our part of the country but these spring cookies are so special. Who could resist them when they’re naturally flavored with orange juice and zest and decorated with mandarin orange segments?

I have always loved cookies of all shapes, sizes and flavors. Today there are hundreds of cookie recipes throughout the world. Often geographic development was reflected in popular cookie recipes. It gave homemakers access to items not available previously. Around the turn of the century, the Kellogg brothers in the USA, invented cornflakes and cookies were made with cereal products. In the 1930’s, with the advent of electric refrigerators, icebox cookie recipes reached new heights of popularity. I’m sure that no one book could ever hold the recipes for all the various types of cookies that have been created.

These little filled cookies might seem quite basic but the flavor is amazing!

Print Recipe
 Mandarin Butterfly Cookie Bites
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
Course dessert
Keyword mandarin butterfly cookie bites
Servings
Ingredients
Filling
Cookie Dough
Course dessert
Keyword mandarin butterfly cookie bites
Servings
Ingredients
Filling
Cookie Dough
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
Instructions
Filling
  1. In a saucepan, combine filling ingredients. Cook over medium heat for 5-7 minutes, or until thickened and translucent, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Cool completely. Set aside.
Cookies
  1. In a large bowl, combine butter & powdered sugar. Beat until light & fluffy. Add flour, orange zest & salt. Beat on low until a soft dough forms. Cover with plastic wrap. Chill 1-2 hours or until firm.
Baking
  1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Shape dough into 1-inch balls & place on lined baking sheet 2-inches apart. Flatten balls with the bottom of a glass; dipping glass in granulated sugar to prevent sticking. Using a fork, prick top of each cookie making 3 rows.
  3. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until edges are light golden brown. Cool completely.
Fill & Decorate
  1. Spread about 1/2 tsp filling on bottoms of half of the cookies. Gently press bottoms of remaining cookies against filling to for 'sandwiches'. On the top of each sandwich put a drop of remaining filling. Carefully lay two (towel dried) mandarin orange segments on it to form a butterfly.
Recipe Notes
  • We found these just got better after a few days.