Almond Fruit Tart:

Almond Fruit Tart

Taken and adapted from Martha Stewart Living.

Ingredients:

For the Crust:

• 1 Cup All Purpose Flour
• 3/4 Cup Almonds, ground
• 1 stick unsalted Butter, softened
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1/8 tsp Salt
• 1/4 cup Sugar

For the Filling:

• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large egg yolks
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1/2 cup almonds, ground
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 cup cream cheese, softened
• 5 tablespoons apricot jam
• 4 cups assorted berries and kiwi

Preparation:

For the crust:  Preheat oven to 350. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour and ground almonds with the salt. Place the butter in the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, and beat until softened. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Gradually add the beaten egg, beating just until incorporated. Add the flour mixture all at once and mix just until it forms a ball. Flatten the pastry into a disk, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 15-30 minutes or just until firm (can place in freezer for about 10-15 minutes.)

For the filling: In a small sauce pan, stir in milk, vanilla and 2 tablespoons sugar, and bring to a boil. Whisk yolks, cornstarch, and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in a bowl. Add hot milk in a slow, steady stream, whisking until combined. Return to pan, and whisk over medium heat until thickened, about 2 minutes.

Place thickened milk mixture in a mixing bowl. Beat in ground almonds, flour and cream cheese. Spread into tart crust. Bake for 15-25 minutes, until golden brown and set. Let cool completely in pan on a rack. Unmold.

Arrange berries on top. In a small saucepan heat through the apricot jam and water. Brush the top of the berries with the glaze.

Serve right away or chill in the fridge. Enjoy!

Source:  http://www.thecandidappetite.com/2011/10/28/almond-fruit-tart/

Nutella Stuffed Brown Butter and Sea Salt Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Source:  http://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/2012/09/nutella-stuffed-brown-butter-sea-salt-chocolate-chip-cookies-my-favorite-cookie-ever/

Nutella Stuffed Brown Butter + Sea Salt Chocolate Chip Cookies {The Best Cookies in The World}

 

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Prep time

2 hours

Cook time

10 mins

Total time

2 hours 10 mins

 

Nutella is stuffed between a hazelnut brown butter flavor enhanced chocolate chip cookie then sprinkled with sea salt.

Author: Monique

Recipe type: Dessert, Cookie

Serves: 2 dozen cookies

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt
• 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter
• 1 1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon plain greek yogurt
• 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
• 1 jar of Nutella, chilled in refrigerator
• Coarse sea salt for sprinkling

Instructions

1. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt in a bowl and set aside. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. The butter will begin to foam. Make sure you whisk consistently during this process. After a couple of minutes, the butter will begin to brown on the bottom of the saucepan; continue to whisk and remove from heat as soon as the butter begins to brown and give off a nutty aroma. Immediately transfer the butter to a bowl to prevent burning. Set aside to cool for a few minutes.
2. With an electric mixer, mix the butter and sugars until thoroughly blended. Beat in the egg, yolk, vanilla, and yogurt until combined. Add the dry ingredients slowly and beat on low-speed just until combined. Gently fold in all of the chocolate chips.
3. Chill your dough for 2 hours in the refrigerator, or place in freezer for 30 minutes if you are super eager, although I cannot promise the same results if you do this.
4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Once dough is chilled measure about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough and roll into a ball. Flatten the dough ball very thinly into the palm of your hand. Place 1 teaspoon of chilled nutella in the middle and fold dough around it; gently roll into a ball — it doesn’t have to be perfectly rolled! Make sure that the nutella is not seeping out of the dough. Add more dough if necessary. Place dough balls on cookie sheet, 2 inches apart and flatten with your hand VERY gently. (Really only the tops need to be flattened a bit!)
5. Bake the cookies 9-11 minutes or until the edges of the cookies begin to turn golden brown. They will look a bit underdone in the middle, but will continue to cook once out of the oven. Cool the cookies on the sheets at least 2 minutes. Sprinkle with a little sea salt. Remove the cooled cookies from the baking sheets after a few minutes and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining dough.

What I'm making for LG tomorrow:

http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2011/05/31/deep-dish-cookie-pie/

Deep-Dish Cookie Pie

(gluten-free!)

One of my Special Diet Recipes.

• 2 cans white beans or garbanzos (drained and rinsed) (500g total, once drained)
• 1 cup quick oats (or certified-gf quick oats)
• 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 3 tbsp oil (canola, veg, or coconut)
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 and 1/2 cups brown sugar (EDIT: click for a Sugar-Free Version.)
• 1 cup chocolate chips

Blend everything (except the chips) very well in a good food processor (not a blender). Mix in chips, and pour into an oiled pan (I used a 10-inch springform pan, but you can use a smaller pan if you want a really deep-dish pie.) Cook at 350F for around 35-40 minutes. Let stand at least 10 minutes before removing from the pan. (Some commenters have had success with a blender, but I did not. Try that at your own risk, and know the results will be better in a high-quality food processor such as a Cuisinart.)

AND, black bean and peanut butter swirl brownies...found here...