Strawberry Harts (tarts) : TWD

Having moved to the east coast 10 years ago from Southern California, I often complain about the cold and ice in January/February. I think the weather powers that be got tired of hearing all my bitching, so they sent us some heat this week. In the league of 90-100 deg days, with random thunderstorms that make it look like the apocalypse is coming. So with all the heat and humidity, I wasn't looking forward to spending too much time near a hot oven.

Thankfully, Marie of A Year in Oak Cottage picked a nice light strawberry tart for us for this week. The only thing that needed cooking was the tart shell. And that for only 8 minutes. Right up my hot weather pattern alley.

Prepping my ingredients, I realized my only tart shell is 10 1/2 inches. Plus, with only two of us, I didn't like the idea of leaving 3/4 of an empty pie shell sitting around. Reading through the directions, Dorie mentions that the crust is very cookie like. So what better a way to prep them than mini tartlette cookie crusts?

I followed the crust recipe to the letter, and was pleasantly surprised to see it come together in the food processor. I quickly rolled it out and set to work cutting it into 9 medium sized 'heart' shapes. I could have probably re-rolled and gotten a few more, but with 95+ degree weather, I knew the batter needed to be shaped quickly lest it turn to goo.

Baking took closer to 10 minutes before I took them out, but they were just barely browned on the bottom. They probably could have gone another 1-2 minutes.

For assembly, I chose a mix of strawberries and blueberries, with a splash of Grand Marnier a dash of sugar, and a bit of fresh pepper. Topped with a dollop of whipped cream, it lost a bit of its heart shape, but made for an adorably portioned serving. The husband and I quickly ate ours up while watching Battlestar Galactica off the DVR. The crust was indeed very cookie like, very light and crumbly in that butter cookie way.

We give this recipe two thumbs up, and I'm bookmarking this recipe for future pies and tarts.

Recipe for the tart shell and other wonderful baked goods can be found in Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan.