Goodies By Anna

Fresh Strawberry Tart with Pine Nut Crust

A strawberry tart is a terrific way to showcase the fresh ripe strawberries that are in season right now! Combined with a rich vanilla pastry cream and crisp crust made with pine nuts, the strawberries are the perfect crowning jewel to this stunningly simple treat.

The Pine Nut Crust is from Thomas Keller's Bouchon cookbook and makes enough dough for three tarts. There is really no way to reduce the recipe so just save the rest of the dough in the freezer for later use.

The pastry cream is smooth and delicious and just firm enough to stand up to the strawberries that are piled on top. You can make the pastry cream a few days in advance and just whip with a whisk before using. Here is how you can make your own.

 

Strawberries: You will need approximately 3 to 4 cups of fresh ripe strawberries, washed, dried and sliced. Set aside.

Pine Nut Crust: You can find the entire recipe here. Divide the dough into three equal portions. Chill one portion and freeze the other two for later use. Chill a 9" tart pan in the fridge until very cold. Press the chilled dough into the chilled tart pan or you can do what I did and roll the dough out between two pieces of plastic wrap to around 1/8" thick. Carefully transfer dough to tart pan and press firmly into the bottom and up the sides of the pan. This dough is really fragile and kind of hard to work with but it tastes so good it's worth the effort! After dough is in the tart pan I like to wrap it in plastic wrap and aluminum foil and freeze it overnight or for a least an hour. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cover the frozen crust with aluminum foil sprayed with Pam for Baking and fill with pie weights. When working with this dough i've come to realize that weighing down the crust while its baking helps to insure that the sides and bottom stay flush and don't shrink. Bake the frozen tart for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and carefully take off the foil and pie weights. Place the tart back into the oven and bake for another 10 - 15 minutes or until golden brown. If the edges seem to be getting a little too brown, place a pie shield over the edge.

This adjustable silicon pie shield that my dad got me is terrific! Remove tart from oven and let cool on wire rack while you make the pastry cream.

Pastry Cream: You can find the entire recipe here. This pastry cream is the perfect creamy vanilla base for the juicy ripe strawberries! Start by bringing the milk to a boil in a small saucepan. Cover the pan and turn off the heat and set aside for 10 minutes. In another medium saucepan whisk the yolks, sugar and cornstarch together until thick and pale. While whisking, add a little of the hot milk into the yolks. Continue whisking and add the remaining hot milk. Put the pot over medium heat and while whisking vigorously without stopping, bring the mixture to a boil. Continue whisking for another 1 or 2 minutes then remove from heat. At this point I pressed the mixture thru a strainer into a bowl. The recipe doesn't call for it but i find that this helps create a very velvety smooth pastry cream. Allow the pastry cream to cool for around three minutes then stir in the vanilla extract and the chunks of butter. Stir until all the butter is melted and incorporated into the pastry cream. At this point the pastry cream needs to be chilled. Cover the top of the pastry cream with plastic wrap and chill thoroughly before using. If chilling overnight, make sure to whip with whisk before using.

Assembly: Pour the chilled pastry cream into the crust and smooth with an offset spatula. Arrange the strawberry slices on top of the pastry cream. Keep tart chilled until ready to serve.

 

 

Fresh Strawberry Cake

It's strawberry season again and I will be looking for all kinds of recipes to use up as many of these ripe red berries as possible! This uncomplicated and delicious Fresh Strawberry Cake is a perfect ending to a sunny BBQ or picnic. It's easy to bring along and tastes great with a little dollop of whipped cream!

The cake flavor and texture is simple and lets the sweet taste of the strawberries really shine through. Think strawberry shortcakes but without the hassle, everything is in one cake! Get out your fresh berries, here is how you can make your own.

You can find the entire recipe here. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. This recipe calls for a 10" pie plate but I used a 10" spring form pan instead. Make sure to spray your pan with Pam for Baking. Set aside.

In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment cream together 2 cups of the sugar and the butter until light and fluffy (3 minutes). Mix in the egg, milk and vanilla until combined. Slowly add the flour mixture until a batter comes together.

Transfer batter to pan and use an offset spatula to evenly smooth the batter. Top the batter with the halved strawberries being sure to cover and much of the batter as possible. Sprinkle the berries with the remaining 2 Tablespoons of sugar. Bake the cake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees then drop the temperature to 325 and continue to bake for approximately one hour or until the top is golden brown and firm to the touch.

Let cake cool in the pan on a wire rack before cutting into wedges. If you are using the spring form pan, lightly run an offset spatula around the edges of the cake to loosen from the pan and remove the outer ring to let the cake cool completely before cutting into wedges. Serve with whipped cream. 

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies

These cookies are a delicious blend of sweet, spicy and a little hot! If you love chocolate and enjoy a little spicy kick then these cookies are for you. The cinnamon and chile powder add an unexpected twist to these crisp chocolatey cookies that makes them perfect for any afternoon coffee break. Here is how you can make your own.

 

You can find the entire recipe here. Start by preheating the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment or Silpat and set aside.

Sugar & Spice Coating: In a small bowl whisk together 1/4 cup of the sugar with the cinnamon and chile powder. Set aside.

Cookie Dough: In a medium size bowl whisk together the sifted cocoa powder, flour, cream of tarter, baking soda and salt. I added 1/2 teaspoon of espresso powder to this mixture. Espresso powder helps to bring out the chocolate flavor. (It is important to sift the cocoa powder so that there are no little nuggets in the batter.) Set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment cream together the butter and the remaining 1 1/2 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and beat until well combined. I added in 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract for a little extra flavor. Add the flour mixture and beat until combined and a dough forms.

The recipe calls for a Tablespoon of dough per cookie but I wanted larger cookies so I used a #24 cookie scoop. Scoop out the dough and form into a ball. Roll the ball in the Sugar & Spice Coating and place on the prepared cookie sheet leaving approximately 3" in between each ball. Bake the cookies for 7 to 8 minutes or until the center is set and cracks form around the edges. This will produce a crunchy edge with a softer center (check out my photo of the inside of the finished cookie). The recipe calls for baking a full 10 minutes but I felt the cookies were a little too crisp. However if you like a really, really crisp cookie by all means bake for the full 10 minutes. Transfer cookies to rack and cool completely before storing.

Brown Sugar Walnut Tarts

My sister loves the little Brown Sugar Walnut Tarts from Starbucks so I decided to try my own version and make some at home. The Starbucks tart uses a shortbread crust but I used a traditional pie crust to create a really flakey crisp buttery crust to house the sweet brown sugar, cinnamon, walnut filling. A little drizzle of a simple powdered sugar glaze and I think these pastries might be even better than Starbucks. Here is how you can make your own.

Dough: Start with the pie crust recipe found here. This is enough dough for six 3" x 3" tarts. Make the dough according to the recipe and roll out into a 1/8" thick rectangle shape. Using a ruler, lightly trace out the 3" x 3" squares and place dough in freezer until firm. When dough is firm, use a sharp knife or pastry wheel cutter to cut out the squares. Place squares in refrigerator or freezer to keep firm.

Brown Sugar Walnut Filling:

1 egg white at room temperature

3/4 cup powdered sugar

1/4 cup toasted walnuts chopped fine

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 Tablespoon cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and process until well combined. Transfer filling to small bowl and set aside. This recipe makes plenty of filling (probably enough for 30 tarts!) but i'm not sure how to scale down the recipe. You can always freeze the leftover filling to use later.

Assembly: Preheat oven to 350 degrees with a rimmed baking sheet set on the lowest rack. Remove dough squares from fridge and pair the tops and bottoms. Brush the edges of the bottom square with water or egg wash. Put a scant 1 teaspoon of filling in the middle of square.

Place second square on top and gently press down the edges. Repeat with remaining squares. When all square are finished, use a fork to repress down the edges of each tart to make sure that each tart is sealed. Place sealed tarts into freezer for 30 minutes or until ready to bake.

When ready to bake, brush the tops of the tarts lightly with some egg wash (lightly beat one egg and brush onto dough) and place on heated baking sheet in oven. Bake tarts for 15 - 20 minutes or until golden brown and puffy. Let tarts cool completely before drizzling with glaze.

Glaze: While tarts are cooling make the glaze.

water

powdered sugar

small bowl

Mix some powdered sugar and a little water together to create a semi-thick icing. Drizzle over the tops of the cooled tarts and let set for 15 minutes before serving.

Mile High Lemon Meringue Pie

Lemon meringue pie: when it's good, it's very very good but if it's bad it's a soggy, soupy, slippery mess! Soupy filling, soggy crust and meringue that slips right off.

If you've ever attempted a lemon meringue pie you've probably encountered at least one of these problems but I am here to tell you that this recipe just could be the holy grail of lemon meringue pie recipes and the funny thing is that its made up of three different recipes to create one terrific pie that covers all the basis: firm silky filling, crisp flakey crust and a tender fluffy meringue that stays put. Here is how you can make your own.

Make the crust first so that it has a chance to cool a bit before filling. I love this pie crust recipe because it creates a flakey, crispy crust every time.

 

Pie Dough for 9" Pie (adapted from America's Test Kitchen):

1 1/4 cups flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 Tbls. sugar

6 Tbls. chilled butter sliced into 1/4 inch pieces

4 Tbls. chilled shortening cut into 2 pieces

2 Tbls. cold vodka

2 Tbls. cold water

Extra: some egg white to brush on crust

Keep butter, shortening, vodka and water in the fridge until just ready to use. Whisk together the flour, salt and sugar in a medium bowl. In the bowl of a food processor pulse 3/4 cup of the flour mixture for 1 or 2 pulses. Add the cold butter and shortening and process until the mixture looks like cottage cheese (around 10 seconds). Scrape down bowl and add remaining flour mixture. Pulse until a mass of dough starts to come together or around 4 to 6 pulses. Dump dough into a medium bowl and sprinkle with the cold vodka and water. Using a rubber spatula press and fold the liquid into the flour mixture until a slightly tacky dough comes together. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour before rolling. When dough is chilled roll out into a 12" circle approximately 1/8" thick. Transfer dough to 9" pie pan and press into the bottom and up the sides to fit. Leave overhang dough in place and put into the fridge for 30 minutes. Place a baking sheet into the oven and preheat oven to 425 degrees. After 30 minutes, remove dough from fridge and trim off overhang and fold the edges under to be flush with the edges of the pan. Flute the edges or use a fork to flatten the crust to the top edge of the pan. Chill dough again for 15 minutes.

When dough is chilled, lightly spray foil with Pam for Baking and line the pie crust, fill with pie weights or pennies. Bake the lined crust on the baking sheet in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and take out foil and pie weights. Lightly brush the bottom and sides of the crust with egg white and return to the oven for additional 9-15 minutes of baking or until crust is golden brown and crisp looking.

If the edges are getting too dark, cover them with strips of foil and continue baking until bottom is browned and crisp looking. Let crust cool while making filling.

Lemon Filling (adapted from Not So Humble Pie):

1 cup plus 1 Tbls. sugar

2/3 cup cold water

1/2 cup corn starch

3/4 cup lemon juice (around 4 lemons)

2 tsp. lemon zest

4 large egg yolks (save the 4 whites for the meringue!)

pinch of salt

1 1/4 cups boiling water

In a medium sauce pan combine 2/3 cup cold water, sugar, corn starch, lemon juice, lemon zest, egg yolks and salt. Whisk until the starch has dissolved and everything is combined. Place the pan over medium-high heat.

Whisk the 1 1/4 boiling water into the mixture and bring to a boil stirring with a rubber spatula. Reduce the heat (or remove from burner) and continue to stir for another minute. Quickly press hot mixture thru a sieve into a bowl and immediately pour strained filling into pie crust.

Place plastic wrap over surface of filling and place pie in refrigerator until chilled, around 1 hour.

Italian Meringue (adapted from America's Test Kitchen):

1/2 cup water

1 cup sugar

4 egg whites 

pinch of salt

1/2 tsp. cream of tarter

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

When pie filling is chilled start the meringue. Combine water and sugar in small sauce pan. Bring to a vigorous boil over medium-high heat. Let mixture boil for 4-5 minutes then remove from heat and set aside. In the bowl of and electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment whisk the egg whites on medium low speed until frothy, around 1 minute. Add the cream of tarter and the salt. Continue beating on medium high speed until soft peaks form, around 2-3 minutes. With mixer running on medium low speed carefully pour the hot syrup into the whites. Add vanilla and beat on medium high speed until meringue has cooled and fairly stiff peaks form, around 9-12 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, mound the meringue over the filling and crust edges. Create peaks with spatula all over the meringue. Using a culinary torch (creme brulee torch), carefully brown the meringue. Pie is ready to serve and is best eaten on the day it is made.