March 25, 2008

Bloody Tarts!


Here we go again. Bloody berries. And NO, I’m not calling them “cheesecakes”. Criminy.

My Dad wants “something raspberry” when I go visit him tomorrow. I’m not in the mood for pie or a cake, (I had an unfortunate incident in the pantry with a full bag of flour and I’m not over it) and besides, I’m cleaning out the freezer to make room for all the delights that will be coming forth in the warm, green months. So I figured something with one of the several hundred frozen puff pastry packages clogging up the freezer. And all the bags of frozen berries that have seen me through the winter.






Like a squirrel, I load up in fall, anticipating months of chill. Well, that, and the fact that my metabolism slides way down in the winter and I’m not about to venture out to the market in my flannel pajamas from 1984 unless someone caught double pneumonia and needs a prescription. And who needs a prescription anyway? What happened to the days of a Vick’s Vapor Rub poultice stuck on your chest and an afternoon of Jerry Springer? Gee….kids, these days! Did I complain when I walked 12 miles in snowdrifts just to volunteer in the nursing home when I was 6 years old? No way! Suck it up, Gen X, Y, and Z and quit sending people to get your antibiotics!


(See what happens when you take antibiotics???)

Warm Raspberry Mint Puff Pastry Tarts

Serves 6

1 (10 oz) package frozen puff pastry shells, thawed
1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, room temperature
½ cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh mint
Milk for brushing shells
Turbinado sugar for sprinkling shells

½ cup granulated sugar
1 ½ cup frozen raspberries

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease or parchment a baking sheet
2. Beat the cream cheese with electric beater until fluffy. Add the sugar and beat again until fluffy. Stir in the vanilla and mint. Set aside.
3. Place the pastry shells on the prepared baking sheet. Brush with milk and sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
4. Bake in preheated oven for about 12-14 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove shells from oven. Use a fork to remove the top for each shell. Set tops aside.
5. While shells are baking, place 1 cup of the raspberries into a small saucepan with ½ cup granulated sugar. Heat over medium high heat until bubbling. Reduce heat slightly and cook, reducing raspberries to a syrup, about 7-8 minutes. Remove from heat, and strain mixture into small measuring cup or bowl, pressing with back of spoon to extract syrup. Discard seeds.
5. Spoon about 2 tablespoons of the cream cheese into each shell, while still on baking sheet. Top with 3-4 raspberries. Place the tops back onto baking sheet (along side of shells), top side down, and return to oven for about 5 minutes, or until filling is warm and shells and tops are completely golden brown.
6. To serve, place warm tartlet onto plate and drizzle warm raspberry syrup around, as you see fit. Top with a sprig of fresh mint.

*When I take this tomorrow, I’m just serving them cold, with the syrup drizzle over the top. I think they’ll be just as good. And anyway, my Dad’s oven makes a weird noise, and I’m afraid it’s going to blow up. And THEN where will we be, uh, Pops??? The days of pies are OVER!



13 comments:

Cakespy said...

Oh good lord those look good. I might get into a catfight in an effort to get to them first! :-)

I bet they'd be just as good cold for breakfast the next morning...

Peter M said...

I finally saw the full process of making puff pastry...I will surely buy and store as you did.

Pops will be pleased that his lil' girl made a yummy dessert!

Emily said...

THAT is funny.
I remember watching Jerry Springer, years and years ago.

I think they look very good. I hope Dad likes them. He's pretty picky, right?

Thistlemoon said...

TOTALLY! I am with you on the whole antibiotics thing - I use antibacterial and antiviral herbs I get from my herb doctor and it works better than any antibiotic that exists! :)

And did we forget about the properties of chicken soup? ....

Anyway, have a great time with your dad - I am sure he will love these!

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

Your dad will love this I'm sure. Echinacea and Cold FX seem to work for me...I was going to say I never get sick, but I had a doozy before Christmas...first time in 4 years...my mother always said "wash yiour hands" and I am sticking to it:D

Deborah said...

You are too funny!

I love the look of these - I have some puff pastry in my freezer!!

Jenny said...

Another great recipe and post girl! I love the Jerry Springer re-cap. Who will ever forget the trash that came out of that show. How embarrasing!

Your tarts look beautiful, wish I could get my hands on one about now! Hope your dad appreciates all your hard work!

Anonymous said...

Alcohol... what about having alcohol instead of antibiotics. Works everytime, at least for me. I'm all about alternative medicine. :-)

Catherine Wilkinson said...

cakespy,
they were awfully good! and there were none left for breakfast, dang it!

peter,
no one will ever see me make puff pastry from scratch! hats off to those who do, but that's just something that hurts my head.

emiline,
several years ago, some friends came over and we all had little kids...we rented one of those JP videos, and locked ourselves all in a bedroom to watch it...like it was porn! The kids ate Trix and wondered what we were up to!

jenn,
we are totally too dependent on antibiotics! no wonder these "super bugs" keep popping up!
and my Dad loved these...a big hit!

val,
he loved them...really loved them. I think these might be one of his very favorites. good use for the puff pastries! a surgeon told me once he never washes his hands in a public restroom! says the sinks, faucets, etc. are the WORSE...he uses purell or something once it gets out...!

deb,
the mint really added a nice dimension to the raspberries...very successful!

jenny,
oh it's a labor of love! he loved them! these are so easy...I would definitely keep these on freezer speed dial!

zen,
that's right. I just dip myself in a vat of patron!

RecipeGirl said...

Too funny :)

Hope Dad liked 'em!

Unknown said...

Hysterical! I'm sure Dad will be smiling when he eats these - after all, you made them, didn't you?

And I'm with you on the antibiotic thing. Well......of course I am. I'm an acupuncturist! ;-)

Heather said...

I'd claw a bitch's eyes out for one of those.

Señor Zen raises a good point. I stick to a strict regimen of bourbon. Never get sick. I think there's something to that.

Catherine Wilkinson said...

recipegirl,
I really miss ol' Jerry...what a weird show!

toni,
Pops loved them! He could care less WHO made them, as long as he likes them!

heather,
We have become a nation of pansies.
I'm with ya...just soak yourself in alcohol.

 
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"The Dish" by Catherine Wilkinson is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.