Key Lime Tarts

Finally a non-chocolate dessert!

I tried these out for Amy and Owen's housewarming party. Luckily I made them the night before and found out that as the recipe originally stated, paper liners weren't the best to use since it was impossible to even peel them. So I re-made them with aluminum and it turned out better. They were still disappointing looking though. The centers sort of sunk in and they were weird looking around the edges. I tried to fancy them up with sugared Key lime slices on top.

Notes from my experience:
*I never saw any "Key lime cooler cookies" so I just used another type of key lime cookie I found in the store. Since they were round I broke them up, mixed with a two tablespoons of melted butter and pressed them down into the bottom of the liners.


It was a good summer dessert. I'm sure I'll make them again with more tweaking to the recipe.

Key Lime Tarts


24 Key Lime Cooler cookies
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons lime juice, preferably Key lime
1 teaspoon lime zest

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Fill 1 muffin tin with aluminum foil baking cups and spray cups with cooking spray. Place 1 Key Lime Cooler cookie in the bottom of the cup, flat side down.
Prepare filling. Beat together cream cheese, egg, sugar, lime juice, and zest until well mixed. Fill the cups to the top. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove tarts to cool. Garnish with tiny mint leaves or lime zest.

Strawberry Galette

Since it is May I thought I needed to try out some new strawberry recipes. This one I got from Martha Stewart. Her recipe included a basil cream but I just made my own whipped cream which turned out really great. The recipe takes a little extra prep time. I made the dough the night before just to have it ready and did the rest the next morning. Also, the original recipe called for a pound of strawberries. I had bought 2 quarts and one was more than enough for the galette. The only thing I'd change for next time would be to make it larger. I used my tart pan to cut the dough so it was more like 8 or 9 inches instead of 10. The strawberry design didn't turn out as good as Martha's pic but I by the time I got to that stage of the recipe I was in a hurry to finish it before lunch and wasn't too concerned. It got good reviews but there wasn't enough to go around! Also, I'm a little bit in love with this whipped cream recipe.

Strawberry Galette

For the Dough

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for surface
1 1/8 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon sugar
8 ounces (1 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons ice water

For the Galette

2 qts strawberries, hulled
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Make the dough: Pulse flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor to combine. Add butter, and pulse until mixture forms coarse crumbs. Add ice water, and pulse until just combined (dough will still be crumbly). Shape dough into a disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (or overnight).

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a floured surface, roll dough to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut out a 10-inch round, and transfer to a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Make the galette: Cut strawberries lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Toss slices with 1/4 cup sugar and the cornstarch, and immediately arrange them in concentric circles on dough. Start 1 inch from edge, overlapping slices slightly. Fold edge of dough over berries. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.

Whisk together yolk and water. Brush dough with the egg wash, and sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon sugar. Dot berries with butter. Bake until crust is golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes.

Transfer to a serving plate. Serve warm with whipped cream.

Whipped Cream

1 cup heavy cream, chilled

3 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Whip the cream, sugar, and vanilla in a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until firm.

Apple Crostata

Apple Crostata
For the pastry:
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated or superfine sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 pound (1 stick) very cold unsalted butter, diced
2 tablespoons ice water

For the filling:
1 1/2 pounds McIntosh, Macoun, or Empire apples (3 large)
1/4 teaspoon grated orange zest
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup granulated or superfine sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) cold unsalted butter, diced

For the pastry, place the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Pulse a few times to combine. Add the butter and pulse 12 to 15 times, or until the butter is the size of peas. With the motor running, add the ice water all at once through the feed tube. Keep hitting the pulse button to combine, but stop the machine just before the dough becomes a solid mass. Turn the dough onto a well-floured board and form into a disk. Wrap with plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Flour a rolling pin and roll the pastry into an 11-inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Transfer it to a baking sheet.

For the filling, peel, core, and cut the apples into 8ths. Cut each wedge into 3 chunks. Toss the chunks with the orange zest. Cover the tart dough with the apple chunks leaving a 1 1/2-inch border.

Combine the flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, and allspice in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture is crumbly. Pour into a bowl and rub it with your fingers until it starts holding together. Sprinkle evenly on the apples. Gently fold the border over the apples to enclose the dough, pleating it to make a circle.


Bake the crostata for 20 to 25 minutes, until the crust is golden and the apples are tender. Allow to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature.