Sweet Spiced Pear & Brown Sugar Puff Pastry Tart

Keeping puff pastry on hand in the freezer is something that I recommend for every home cook. It's just so versatile and easy to use. It can be used to create both sweet and savory dishes. The puffy, flaky, buttery layers present so beautifully. And, the results are always delicious and crowd-pleasing. Guests think you've invested a great amount of time in preparation, but the truth is that working with store-bought puff pastry is almost effortless and very uncomplicated. With this recipe, I've taken a sheet of puff pastry, brushed it with perfectly-spiced and sweetened butter, lined it with thinly-cut pear slices and baked it to perfection.

Something truly magical happens during the baking process. The butter mixture becomes almost caramel-like, the pear slivers soften up beautifully, the juices from the pears slightly release to help flavor the tart and the dough puffs up all around the fruit so stunningly.

This can be enjoyed as a dessert or even with coffee in the morning. For dessert, I recommend serving this with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, a dollop of whipped cream or even a light dusting of powdered sugar.

This would be a pretty dessert to grace your holiday table this year, too. And, know that you could easily make this into 4 - 6 individual tarts simply by cutting the pastry into small squares prior to topping and baking.

Note that the pear slices can be arranged however you prefer. You can do basic, straight lines of pears or switch it up and do a more-rustic, varying pattern as I have done.

Serves 4 - 6.

Apple Cherry Free Form Pie with Crumble Topping

 

I was a baking and cooking fool on the Fourth of July this year. Most years we gather with family and friends on Independence Day ... and everyone brings a dish to share.  This year was a little different.  Everyone was busy with other plans, so we had our own little cookout at home that included just our immediate family and my mother.  Steve took the kids to a little carnival thing a couple of towns over during the day, so I stayed home and spent several hours in the kitchen whipping up some fabulous summertime fare.

I started the morning making this yummy pie.  I ended with throwing chicken (stuffed with ham and cheese - post to come soon) and marinated pork chops on the grill.  And, in between, I made my Fresh Veggie Pizza Wonton Cups for appetizers later and a bunch of other sides to round out our meal.

This dessert will now be a staple in our house.  It was so simple and much quicker than making a traditional pie.  We're not typically big pie lovers, but a couple of us jokingly fought over the last piece.  (There may or may not have been mention of an arm wrestling contest for dibs on the lone, final slice.)  My husband loved, loved, loved it!  (I've just picked up the ingredients to make it again this weekend for him.)

He compared it to "something you'd get in a little French pastry shop."  (Um, I'm not quite sure when you traveled to France, honey ... but I would have liked to have gone.)

Any berry or fruit would work in this pie.  I wanted to go the apple pie route since it's kind of an "All-American" dessert staple.  Top this with some vanilla ice cream and you've got one heck of a end to any summertime meal.  It is delicate, flakey and not overly sweet (like so many apples pies).

Serves 6- 8.