White Chocolate Fruit Tarts

I've been wanting to make a tart for as long as I can remember...bought a tart pan ages ago and never used it. A friend of mine made this tart recipe and as soon as I put it in my mouth, I decided I had to make it. So I finally decided to take the leap...
UNTIL I realized that I didn't have the right sized tart pan for this recipe :-( FAIL. Instead of an 11-inch tart pan, I only had a 9.5 inch one.
Well...that's OK, because I turned this recipe into mini tarts using a muffin/cupcake pan. (My friend did the same thing.)

Before I continue, I will just say that these tarts taste heavenly and are great for any occasion...especially if you want to have a party or a family gathering. The pastry crust is not too buttery, yet it's flaky and firm; the white chocolate filling is delicious and creamy ( yet not too rich and not too sweet)...it's a mix of heavy whipping cream, cream cheese, and white chocolate; and finally the tangy fruits are the perfect complement to the sweet filling. You can basically put whatever fruits you like as a topping including tropical fruits and/or berries. Be as creative as you like! I added pieces of mango even though it was not listed in the ingredients, and I saw that other people who made this recipe used blueberries and raspberries.

Oh...and I can't forget the source. I made adjustments, added tips, and made it more organized with photos. But here is the link to the original recipe from AllRecipes.com: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/white-chocolate-fruit-tart/detail.aspx. If you want to make the mini tarts, I suggest you use the recipe I typed below!

Ingredients:
Crust -

• 3/4 cup butter (1 and a half sticks), softened
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1 and a 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Filling -

• 1 package (10 oz) white chocolate chips (about 1 and a 1/2 cups + 1-2 tbsp), melted and cooled
• 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 (8 oz package) cream cheese, softened

Topping -

• 1 (20 oz) can pineapple chunks, undrained
• 1 pint fresh strawberries, sliced (I cut them into half slices)
• 1 (11 oz) can mandarin oranges, drained (I used fresh mandarin oranges, which I cut into pieces)
• 2 kiwis, peeled and sliced (I cut them into pieces)
• 1/4 cup fresh mango, peeled and cubed (optional)

Glaze -

• 3 tbsp sugar
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp lemon juice (I used freshly squeezed)
  

1. For the crust, in a mixing bowl, cream the butter and confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy.

2. Gradually add the flour and mix well.

3. Press into an ungreased 11-inch tart pan with removable bottom or a 12-inch pizza pan with sides. 

(If you don't have either, divide the dough into 2 equal portions. Then, using TWO 12-cup cupcake/muffin pans, divide each half of the dough evenly between all the cups. I probably used 1 tbsp of dough in each cup. Press down with your finger or using the bottom of a glass. This recipe will yield 24 mini tarts.)

I used the bottom of this glass to pressed down the dough.

For this tray, I pressed down using the glass and I also pressed with my finger to get some crust higher up on the sides. Either way works just fine.

4. Bake the tart at 300 degrees F for 25-30 minutes or until lightly browned. (If you are making the mini tarts, bake each tray one at a time at 300 degrees F for around 25-27 minutes or until lightly browned.) Cool on a wire rack.

5. For the filling, in a mixing bowl, beat the melted white chocolate and the cream. Add the cream cheese and beat until smooth.

6. Spread the filling over the crust (or if you are making the mini tarts, take about 1 full tbsp and spread it over the crust in each individual cup). Refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

7. For the topping, drain the pineapple, reserving about 1/2 cup juice; set the juice aside for the glaze. Arrange all of the fruit over the filling.

8. For the glaze, in a small saucepan, combine the cornstarch and sugar. Stir in the lemon juice and reserved pineapple juice until smooth. Bring to a boil over medium heat; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.

9. Cool the glaze, then brush it over the fruit.

10. Refrigerate for 1 hour before serving. Refrigerate the leftovers. Enjoy! 

Pecan Tarts

It's been a VERY long time since my last post. I just want to sincerely apologize for the long wait. I haven't had many opportunities to bake in the past few months. With that said, Eid is one occasion for which I have to bake no matter what. It doesn't feel like a holiday unless there's goodies to wake up to in the morning and sweet, delicious aromas wafting from the kitchen. I haven't really made anything to do with pastries yet, so I thought I'd give this recipe a try since it seemed less complicated than making an actual pie or tart (which I have YET to try). Pecans are my favorite nuts, so there was also no question about using anything else for the filling (although walnuts are pretty good too). I made the mistake of using pecans that were a little old (which I stored in the fridge for some time.) Note: Always use fresh nuts for the best taste. In fact, always use fresh everything.

And finally, the recipe came from a book that came straight from South Africa (who they say have some of the best bakers) courtesy of  one of my cousins who went there over the past summer. The book is called "Busy Biscuits." Not sure if I like this book yet...I have a to try a few more things and then I will give it an official review. The only thing about these kinds of books from other countries is that they don't always have exact recipes. They give you general measurements for certain ingredients, and then usually you have to figure out some things as you go along. For example, there is no exact measurement for how much flour to use in this recipe, so I had to keep adding flour until I felt the dough was just right. Basically, the dough cannot be too gooey, and you add only very little flour at a time until the dough stops sticking to your fingers and the bowl - it should be pliable enough to roll out and cut out.

This tart wasn't bad at all. The pastry kind of melts in your mouth once you eat it. I feel like the filling could be better, which is why I will also add a different recipe of pecan tarts from another cookie book that I like to use "Cookies: 1,001 Mouthwatering Recipes from Around the World." Here's the final product, and following that is the recipe...

Ingredients:


For the Pastry:

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 egg yolk 
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 cup cake flour (or more...you will definitely need more!)
• 1 tsp vanilla flavoring

For the Filling:

• 30 g butter or margarine (softened)
• 1 egg white
• 1 tbsp cocoa
• 1 level cup chopped pecans
• 2 tbsp powdered sugar

Topping: 

Melting Chocolate (I used Ghirardelli Milk Chocolate Chips and melted it in a double broiler over the stove...YUMMM)

1. Take out a mini muffin pan with 24 cups and set aside. For the pastry, mix the butter, vanilla, and powdered sugar using an electric/stand mixer until fluffy.

2. Next, take an egg and separate the egg yolk from the egg whites. Put aside the egg white to use later for the filling.

3. Take the egg yolk and beat it into the pastry mixture.

4. Fold in the baking powder and cake flour to make a soft dough. After using 1 cup of flour, keep adding flour 1 or 2 tbsp at a time until you reach the right consistency of dough. (Read the intro of this post to get a better idea.)

5. Roll out the dough 4 mm thick, cut into rounds (at least 2-2 and half inches in diameter), and place them VERY GENTLY into the mini muffin cups. Don't press the rounds into the cups too hard or the dough will break. Gently press the top edges down.

6. For the filling, whisk the egg white until stiff. Then add sugar and whisk until it's dissolved. Fold in the cocoa, butter, and chopped pecans.

7. Take the filling, and fill the tarts in the muffin cups. Optional: Place half a pecan on top for decoration.

8. Preheat the oven at 350 degrees F, and then bake the tarts for about 10 minutes.

9. When the tarts are cool, drizzle the tops with melted chocolate. (I used a pastry big and round tip...take the pastry bag, drop in the round tip, fill the pastry bag with the melted chocolate, and squeeze gently!)