Receta Christmas Week: Mini Bakewell Tarts
All good things must come to an end, and that includes Christmas Week. There’s still one more recipe to share, though, on the theme of Christmas Pies and Pastries.
I had a few options, but in the end I couldn’t pass up the excuse to crack open a jar of homemade jam to make these adorable bite-sized versions of Bakewell Tart, a quintessentially British concoction of a pastry shell filled with a thin layer of jam and sweet almond frangipane, and finished with a thin layer of white almond-scented glaze.
Sure, Bakewell Tarts aren’t a traditional holiday treat, but I think a case could be made for starting a new tradition – there is something awfully festive about these teensy tarts draped in snowy white icing and capped with a sliver of bright red glace cherry, after all.
These tarts do require some work to assemble, but the good news is that they also freeze beautifully – which means you can bake up a batch or two well in advance, freeze them unfrosted in an airtight container, and then thaw them out overnight before finishing them off with icing and cherries.
Then prepare yourself for the inevitable onslaught of compliments. Because if there’s one truth when it comes to sweet treats, it’s that no one can resist desserts in bite-size. No one.
Now, before we wrap up all the Christmas Week fun, there’s one last bit of good news to share. After all, it’s not Christmas without presents, right?
So here’s the deal… Freund Container & Supply has generously donated $100 gift certificates for each #ChristmasWeek blogger to give away!
Freund Container & Supply is the largest distributor of glass bottles, containers and wholesale packaging supplies online. Freund offers over 5000 items in stock every day, 98% same day shipping and low-price guarantees. Take a look at Freund’s wide selection of jars, tins, bottles and vials for all your crafting and food related needs!
Giveaway Details:
This giveaway is for one $100 gift certificate to Freund Container & Supply. Gift certificate will expire on March 31, 2013. Gift certificate is a one-time use certificate and must be used in its entirety; any leftover monies on the gift certificate will be forfeited. This giveaway is open to both US and Canadian residents. However, it should be noted that due to current International shipping rates, any Canadian winners will pay higher shipping costs for orders. The giveaway will run from today, December 7th, 2012, through Wednesday, December 12th, 2012.
Freund Container & Supply is also offering all #ChristmasWeek blog readers 10% off purchases from now through March 31, 2013. Simply enter code JINGLEME10 to receive your discount!
How to Enter:
Leave a comment telling me about what edible gift you’d package up with your Freund loot.
Bonus Entries:
You can earn up to three bonus entries by doing the following:
On top of that, if you’d like more chances to win a $100 gift certificate from Freund, please make sure you visit today’s blog posts from each of the other #ChristmasWeek bloggers!
***Disclaimer: This giveaway is being provided by Freund Container & Supply. #ChristmasWeek bloggers have not been compensated as part of this giveaway.***
Mini Cherry Bakewell Tarts
Author: Isabelle Boucher (Crumb)
Recipe type: Dessert
Prep time: 75 mins
Cook time: 20 mins
Total time: 1 hour 35 mins
Serves: 24
A British classic goes bite-sized in these adorable mini tarts filled with jam and frangipane and covered with a snowy white icing. Fill with whatever flavour jam you like – raspberry or redcurrant are traditional, but this is also a great canvas for showing off more experimental flavours.
Ingredients
Pastry:
- 1¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup icing sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup cold butter, cut into small pieces
- 2 egg yolks
- ½ tsp vinegar
- 3 tbsp ice-cold water
- Filling:
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter, softened
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- ¾ cup finely ground almonds
- ½ tsp almond extract
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ cup raspberry jam (or any other jam you like)
- Glaze:
- 1½ cups icing sugar
- 2 tbsp water
- ½ tsp almond extract
- 6 red glace cherries. quartered
Instructions
Prepare the Pastry Shells:
In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, icing sugar and salt and pulse to mix. Add the cold butter, and pulse five or six times, until mixture resembles coarse meal.
In a small bowl, whisk together egg yolk and vinegar. With the machine running, add egg yolk mixture, then add the ice water, one tablespoon at a time, stopping as soon as the dough starts to clump together.
Turn the dough out onto a clean surface, divide in half, and gently form each half into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least one hour or until quite firm. (You can also do this a day or two in advance.)
Prepare the Filling:
While the pastry chills, begin on the frangipane filling.
In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in ground almonds, almond extract and vanilla. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap, and chill for 30 minutes.
Assemble the Tarts:
Preheat oven to 400F.
On lightly floured surface, roll out the chilled pastry to ⅛” thick. Using a 3-inch round cookie cutter, cut out 24 circles. Gently press the dough circles into the cups of a mini muffin tin, then place in the freezer to chill thoroughly for 15 minutes.
Spoon ½ tsp jam into the bottom of each shell, then spoon in a little frangipane overtop, making sure to leave a little rim of tart shell uncovered. (Make sure not to overfill, as it will be very difficult to extract the tarts once they’re baked!)
Bake in preheated oven until filling is puffed and golden, about 18-20 minutes. Let tarts cool in pan for about 10 minutes, then carefully remove and set on a wire rack to cool off completely before frosting.
Glaze and Decorate the Tarts:
Once the tarts are cooled, whisk together icing sugar, water and almond extract in a small bowl until you have a smooth, thick glaze. Spread a layer of icing onto the cooled tarts, then finish each one with a piece of cherry.
3.1.09
Welcome to day #5 of Christmas Week, a multi-blogger event co-hosted by Kim of Cravings of a Lunatic and Jen of Juanita’s Cocina. Today’s theme for Christmas Week is “Christmas Pies and Pastries”. Make sure you visit all the participating bloggers today to see what special dish they whipped up for you: