Flapper Tarts

Flapper pie is a traditional dish from the prairies of western Canada. The name seems to stem from the fact that the pie originated in the era of the ‘flapper girl’. Flappers were modern, young girls in the 1920s, often with a slightly immoral behavior. Precursors of the 1920s flapper were both, the late Victorian ‘new woman’ and the Edwardian ‘Gibson girl’.

Unlike their Victorian grandmothers, 1920s flappers cut off their long hair and wore a bob instead. They also wore makeup, smoked and drank alcohol in public. And like all 1920’s women, flappers wore short (knee-length) dresses. However, unlike more conservative women, flappers wore only the bare necessities under their dresses, often just a slip and rolled stockings.

Flapper pie was served in every café that graced small, Canadian prairie towns. Some foods are so regionally specific that people outside of a certain geographic area have never even heard of them, let alone tasted the dishes. Such is the case with flapper pie.

Flapper pie is a decadent combination of three components: a cinnamon-y, graham cracker crust, a creamy vanilla custard filling and a meringue topping. Instead of a pie I decided to make individual tarts.

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Flapper Tarts
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword flapper tarts
Servings
Ingredients
Crumb Crust
Filling
Meringue
Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword flapper tarts
Servings
Ingredients
Crumb Crust
Filling
Meringue
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
Instructions
Crust
  1. Preheat oven to 325 F.
  2. Combine crust ingredients; reserving 1/3 cup for topping. Line a 12 cup muffin pan with paper liners. Place 2 Tbsp of crumbs in each one, gently pushing up the sides & over the bottom. Try not to press to firmly to avoid them becoming to hard after baking.
  3. Bake for 10-15 minutes, or just until crumbs stick together & brown slightly.
Meringue Stabilizer
  1. In a small saucepan, combine 1/2 cup water & 1 Tbsp cornstarch (listed in meringue ingredients); bring to a boil & thicken. Set aside to cool.
Filling
  1. In a heavy saucepan, heat 2 cups milk until it boils. In a small bowl, combine sugar & cornstarch, then add salt, egg yolks, 1/4 cup milk & vanilla. Whisk into boiling milk; continuing to whisk until mixture returns to a boil & thickens. Pour into baked tart shells.
Meringue
  1. Adjust oven temperature to 350 F. Beat egg whites & salt until frothy then gradually add sugar, beating until stiff. Add vanilla & MERINGUE STABALIZER, beating until stiff peaks form.
  2. Pipe the meringue over the custard in tart shells making sure it touches crust to seal & prevent it from shrinking after browning. Top with reserved crumbs.
  3. Bake tarts until golden, about 10-12 minutes. Cool completely set away from drafts.
Recipe Notes
  • The meringue stabilizer is used to ensure there is no 'weeping' as the meringue cools & sets.
  • If you prefer to make pie instead, this amount of ingredients will make a 9-inch pie nicely.

Lime Berry Tart

The small pleasures of life are found in the little things, in the landscape by the window, in the sky in spectacular colors, in the great sea that sends waves towards us, in a quiet strip of endless beach.

In people who make us smile, in people who understand us even without words, in dishes that go into the oven and create the most incredible smell throughout the house, in rolls of stuffed pasta that are slowly baked in the oven.

The little pleasures in life lie in the little things we almost always take for granted, just assuming they will always be there. Over the last number of years, it has come very clear to me there are so many ‘little’ things to appreciate and be grateful for daily. My sister, Loretta once said to me, ‘nothing ever stays the same’. At the time I was much younger and didn’t give much though to those words. As the years have passed, I understand what she meant.

Today, July 25th is Loretta’s birthday. I am very grateful to have her in my life. Although we don’t live in close proximity, our connection is always there.

I find this quote from Steven Aitchison so fitting, ‘If I could give you one special ability in life it would be the gift of seeing yourself through the eyes of someone who loves you …. then you would realize just how amazing you truly are’.

Today, I am making a blueberry themed dessert in honor of Loretta’s birthday because she is a huge blueberry fan.

BIRTHDAY WISHES LORETTA WITH LOVE!

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Lime Berry Tart
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword lime berry tart
Servings
Ingredients
Course dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword lime berry tart
Servings
Ingredients
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Rate this recipe!
Instructions
Shortbread Crust
  1. Preheat your oven to 375 F.
  2. In your food processor, pulse the flour, sugar, salt & butter until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs. This should only take about 30 seconds. Press the crumbly mixture into a 4 X 14-inch tart pan (making the sides slightly higher than the center. Do this by pressing the mixture up towards the edge of the pan).
  3. Bake the crust for about 15 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden brown. Make sure to watch it carefully to make sure the crust doesn’t burn. Once the crust has finished baking, remove it from the oven and set it aside to cool completely.
Filling
  1. In a medium heatproof bowl, place eggs, sugar, lime zest, lime juice, and heavy cream, if using, & whisk to combine. Place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (bain-marie). Cook on moderate heat, whisking constantly, until mixture becomes thick (mine was ready in 10 minutes, but it can take up to 20). It should coat the back of a wooden spoon and leave a clear pass if you run your finger through it. The filling will thicken more once cooled.
  2. Remove from heat & immediately strain mixture through a sieve. Add butter, a few cubes at a time, and whisk until completely melted and incorporated, and mixture is smooth. Take your time with it—the whisking makes for an airy and light texture. Allow to cool to room temperature before filling the tart.
  3. Fill the tart shell with the lime filling, smooth it as best you can & decorate to your liking. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours until chilled.

Raspberry Sour Cream Pie

The perfect pie for a summer evening. First off, if your not accustomed to using sour cream in a sweet pie filling you will probably cringe. My first encounter with this idea was many years ago and I’m still addicted.

Sour Cream has worked its way into many facets of my baking and cooking, so for me its a basic fridge staple. I know for some people it happens all too often … you pick up a container of sour cream to have on some tacos and then what to do with the rest before it spoils??

This pie recipe makes an extra deep dessert. It works well in a spring-form pan or a deep pie dish. The crunchy, buttery brown sugar streusel on top is lightly accented with cardamom spice & fresh lemon zest. It is the perfect foil to the lush, rich sour cream and raspberry filling.

I should mention, its best not to use light or fat-free sour cream. Another thing, is to bake the pie until the filling is set THEN top with the streusel and bake until golden. This is a pie that is best served cold or just slightly warm as it will not be firm enough to slice if it is hot.

Raspberries lovers … this one is for you!!

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Raspberry Sour Cream Pie
Votes: 4
Rating: 2.25
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Servings
Ingredients
Shortbread Crust
Raspberry Filling
Servings
Ingredients
Shortbread Crust
Raspberry Filling
Votes: 4
Rating: 2.25
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Instructions
Shortbread Crust
  1. In a bowl, combine butter & sugar; beat until light & fluffy. Mix in flour & baking powder; blend together. Pat dough in a 9-inch spring form pan or a deep dish pie pan.
Raspberry Filling
  1. Preheat oven to 375 F.
  2. In a bowl, combine sugar, flour & salt; whisk in eggs, sour cream & vanilla until smooth. Place raspberries in pie shell & pour filling over top. Bake for 30-35 minutes OR UNTIL FILLING IS JUST SET.
Streusel
  1. In a bowl, combine all streusel ingredients until well blended. After the pie filling is set, remove from the oven & turn the heat down to 350 F. Squeeze the streusel between your fingers & palms to create clumps ranging in size from small to large grapes then top pie with it. Bake an additional 10-15 minutes OR until streusel is golden brown.
  2. Remove from oven & allow pie to cool completely on a wire rack to thicken further. Serve warm or at room temperature. Refrigerate any leftover pie.
Recipe Notes
  • Even though I mentioned you should use a full fat sour cream, I chose to use a fat free one too lighten up on the calories.
  • The only difference is, it will take longer to bake & the filling is not quite as firm in the end result.
  • As far as the taste goes, there is no difference. It's heavenly!!

Blueberry Zucchini Bars with Lemon Glaze

There’s no question, fresh blueberries are a pleasure to bake with. But, along with being quite expensive, their season is short. As a result, frozen ones become the backbone of winter blueberry desserts. Using them in a pie presents no problem. When it comes to putting them into a batter, frozen berries bleeding juice, turn that golden hue into a shade of purple green when baked. Not good! I’ve found a simple solution is to rinse the berries in cold water, then gently dry them between layers of paper towel. You will probably lose a bit of the berries nutrition, but for most part, the juice and vitamins will remain inside.

Pairing zucchini with fruit in baked goods might seem a little odd but no different than using carrots in cake. Zucchini has grown in popularity over the years due to its amazing growth rate in the garden and its versatility. It can be sauteed, baked, poached, stuffed, eaten raw and of course baked into breads, cakes, scones etc., etc.

These little blueberry/zucchini bars are extremely moist and tender. The lemon in the batter and the glaze takes them to the level of amazing in my opinion. We just loved them.


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Blueberry Zucchini Bars with Lemon Glaze

Votes: 5
Rating: 4.4
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Course dessert
Cuisine American

Servings


Ingredients
Lemon Glaze

Course dessert
Cuisine American

Servings


Ingredients
Lemon Glaze

Votes: 5
Rating: 4.4
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Rate this recipe!


Instructions
Batter
  1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease a 9 X 13-inch ( or 15 X 10 X 1) baking pan.

  2. In a small bowl, combine zucchini, buttermilk, lemon zest & lemon juice; toss to combine. In a large bowl, cream butter & sugar until light & fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. In a third bowl, whisk 3 1/4 cups flour, baking soda & salt; gradually add to creamed mixture alternately with zucchini mixture, mixing well after each addition. Toss blueberries in remaining flour; fold into batter.

  3. Transfer batter to prepared pan, spreading evenly. Bake 50 minutes for 9 X 13-inch size or until light golden & a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from oven to a wire rack.

Lemon Glaze
  1. In a small bowl, mix glaze ingredients until smooth; spread over top while bars are still warm.


Recipe Notes
  • This recipe easily divides in half for a smaller amount using an 8 X 8-inch baking pan.

Stuffed Zucchini Rolls over Spanish Rice

This is a meal that is as much about the process as the final plate. Most everyone has made ‘zucchini boats’ at one time or another and this is a lovely rendition of them.

I have learned from travelling across cultures, that one thing can truly bring people together, no matter where in the world you are from, and that is food. 

No doubt, every culture has its own equivalent of ‘comfort food’. Stuffing vegetables is a Middle Eastern food trend that has been popular for thousands of years, combining spices and food groups in unique ways.

In truth, zucchini are simply immature cultivars of the squash family, eaten while the rind is still edible. Developed in Northern Italy, zucchini was not introduced to the rest of the world until the 1930’s.

‘Kousa Mahshi’ (Arabic for stuffed zucchini), is a type of yellow squash found in the Middle East which is hollowed out, stuffed with a meat/rice filling and steeped in a seasoned tomato broth. These were likely a reinvention of the ‘stuffed grape leaves’  common in the Mediterranean, Balkans and Persian Gulf.

I found the idea of hollowing out the small zucchini and stuffing them quite unique as opposed to just slicing them to make ‘boats’. Rather than using a meat/rice combo in my zucchini rolls, I used a ground turkey/mushroom stuffing and served them over a ‘simple’ Spanish Rice Pilaf.

This is not a difficult recipe, just one that takes a bit of time but is worth it in taste and eye appeal.

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Stuffed Zucchini Rolls over Spanish Rice
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Rating: 5
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Instructions
Zucchini
  1. Wash zucchini & slice off stem end. Use a long narrow apple or vegetable corer to core zucchini, leaving 1/2-inch walls. Care should be taken not pierce the shell or the end. If you are cutting your zucchini in half, make sure to leave your cut end with a solid bottom. Gently remove all the pulp from the rolls & set aside. Reserve pulp for turkey filling.
Turkey Stuffing
  1. In a skillet, heat 1 Tbsp olive oil. Saute onion & garlic until soft. Add mushrooms & reserved zucchini pulp; saute about another 2 minutes. Remove from skillet & set aside.
  2. In the same skillet, heat 1 Tbsp olive oil; add ground turkey. Lightly brown, stirring occasionally, about 6 minutes. Stir in reserved onion & mushroom mixture. Add chicken broth; stir in tomato, basil & rosemary & cook 1 minute longer. Drain off any excess fat, remove mixture from heat & set aside. When mixture has cooled, add cheese, egg, salt & pepper. Fill zucchini rolls with mixture.
  3. Preheat oven to 375 F. In a Dutch oven, place stewed tomatoes & water. Arrange stuffed zucchini in the pot. Cover & bake for 25-30 or until zucchini is tender-crisp. With a slotted spoon lift rolls out of pot & serve on top of rice or serve in stewed tomatoes WITH rice, your choice!
'Simple' Spanish Rice
  1. In a large pot, heat oil. Stir in onion & saute until tender, about 5 minutes. Mix rice into pot & stir until it begins to brown. Stir in chicken broth & salsa. Reduce heat & simmer (covered) for 20 minutes until all the liquid has been absorbed & the rice is cooked.

Baked Stone Fruit Dumplings

Part of the enjoyment of writing these blog stories and recipes is the research process. I find it fascinating to learn about the different cultures through their recipes. With some, you have to dig deep to retrieve the authentic recipe or process. Many recipes, as I know from my own family heritage, only exist in memory. These recipes are priceless pieces of family traditions. Each having a history and story of it’s own making them unique and special.

Whenever I feel inspired to create a new recipe, I try to learn everything I can about it’s history and the way it is traditionally made, then I set out on my own. It’s not that I think I can do it better, but rather just personalizing it to our taste.

Fruit dumplings were most popular in England and Central Europe. As people crossed the ocean, they carried with them the recipes for the foods they knew and loved. As time passed they experimented more with the flavors of fruit dumplings. The dough evolved from flour and potatoes to the pastry dough we know today.

I have made this BAKED STONE FRUIT DUMPLING  recipe with either my own homemade pastry or frozen puff pastry. We found them real good either way.

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Baked Fruit Dumplings
Adding a scoop of ice cream makes this an irresistible dessert.
Votes: 2
Rating: 3
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Course dessert
Servings
Dumplings
Ingredients
Dumpling
Streusel
Caramel Sauce
Course dessert
Servings
Dumplings
Ingredients
Dumpling
Streusel
Caramel Sauce
Votes: 2
Rating: 3
You:
Rate this recipe!
Instructions
Dumplings
  1. In a small bowl, combine sugar, bread crumbs, cinnamon & nutmeg. On a lightly floured surface, roll pastry into two 12-inch squares. Cut each sheet into nine 4-inch squares. Brush squares with egg. Place 1 tsp sugar mixture in the center of each square; top with 2 Tbsp chopped fruit of your choice & 1 more tsp sugar mixture. Gently bring up corners of pastry to center; pinch edges to seal. Place on greased baking sheets.
Streusel
  1. In a small bowl, combine streusel ingredients. Brush remaining egg over dumplings; press streusel over tops. Bake at 375 F. for 14-18 minutes or until golden brown. Place pans on wire racks & allow to cool about 10 minutes before serving.
Caramel Sauce
  1. While dumplings are baking, combine flour & water in a small saucepan beating until smooth. Add the sugars, butter & salt. Bring to a boil; cook & stir until smooth & blended. If serving immediately, place dumpling on serving plate & pour sauce over top.
Recipe Notes
  • These versatile dumplings can also be made with tart apples or mixed berries.