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tart

Blueberry Crumb Bars + An anniversary giveaway!

September 20, 2010

Blueberry Crumb Bars

I’m going a little nutty over blueberries. And for once, I’m not simply ogling at recipes I see online and then letting out a sigh because I can’t have any. Instead, I’m going to town bookmarking blueberry recipes (if you have any, please share!) and of course, enjoying snacking on the berries with tonnes of vanilla yoghurt.

I stocked up on my share of blueberries over the weekend and decided on making some blueberry crumb bars. Now although the berries are available by the truckloads at the supermarket, they don’t come at a very pocket-friendly price, so I’ve to make sure to use the blueberries like a frugal Indian girl. Add to that the pressure of delivering no-fail recipes from the Purple Foodie Kitchen (phew!). The best part about the recipe? It’s easy! You don’t have to fuss over rolling out the dough. Instead, you just press the crumbly dough into the pan.

I set out to make blueberry crumb bars using the sweet tart dough from Tartine and a cup of blueberries with a little bit of vanilla sugar. The same tart dough was used as a crumb topping to give the most delicious crumb bar there is.  No really, it is. You’ve got to try it to believe it. When you bite into a piece of the blueberry crumb bar, the buttery crumbs on the top melt in your mouth. Next, the tart berries in their unctuous syrup tickle your tongue (thank goodness for vanilla sugar). And finally the crust shatters, delicately into your mouth. Pair this with a good heaping of vanilla yoghurt, and your heart will start singing. Just as I write this post, I’ve had three slices already.

Blueberry Crumb Bars

Okay, so in other news, The Purple Foodie turns 3 this week! Geez, I can’t believe it’s been that long. Three whole years! To celebrate the milestone, I’m giving away this gorgeous silk handmade clutch from one of my favourite ethnic stores. I got one for me, and one for you. Boys, don’t be disheartened, I’ve got more stuff coming up through the week (spices! books!). Plus you know, you could give this to your other half – trust me, she’ll love it!

  • Just leave a comment and let me know what you’d like to see more of on The Purple Foodie or what makes you come back to the blog, and consider yourself entered for the giveaway.
  • I’ll be shipping worldwide, so everyone’s welcome to enter!
  • For an additional entry, tweet about the giveaway (you could either come back here and let me know or mark me on the tweet @purplefoodie or #purplefoodie)
  • The giveaway is open until 30th September, 2010.

Handmade Silk Clutch

Blueberry Crumb Bars

Yield: 8 wedges from a 8 inch tart pan

For the base as well as crumb topping
Inspired from Tartine (USA | UK | India)

100g icing sugar
250g flour
150g / 3/4th cup butter
1 egg

Filling:
1cup / 200g blueberries
2 tbsp vanilla sugar

Equipment: 8 inch tart pan, pastry cutter

  1. Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C.
  2. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour and sugar. Use a fork or pastry cutter to blend in the butter and egg. Dough will be crumbly. Pat most of dough into the prepared pan (1/3rd inch thick).
  3. In another bowl, stir together the blueberries and the vanilla sugar. Sprinkle the blueberry mixture evenly over the crust, making sure to leave some space around the periphery. Crumble the remaining dough over the berry layer. In case you’re left with additional dough (I was) you can freeze it for up to three weeks, or use it as a simple cookie dough.
  4. Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes, or until top is slightly brown. Cool completely before slicing into wedges. Yep, the hardest part is the wait.

{ 93 comments }

Strawberry Rhubarb Tarts

June 8, 2010

strawberry rhubarb tart

Yesterday when I was at the market going through the usual vegetable section, I saw a lone pair of greenish stalks on one of the shelves. I almost didn’t pay any attention to it, thinking it was celery.  And just when I went closer to pick up the box of endamame beans placed right next to it, I did a double take. Crimson stalks? And then suddenly all the images of rhubarb I had seen on the internet flashed through my head. A little scratching on the surface gave me the tangy smell that I safely assumed to be rhubarb. I still couldn’t believe my luck, so I went over to the shop attendant and he confirmed that it was indeed rhubarb. The joy, the joy!

And just like that, the fate of the last pair of rhubarb stalks was sealed: I’d go home and make strawberry rhubarb tarts!

I read up a little on how to cook with rhubarb. Should it be peeled? Should it be precooked? What proportion of strawberries to rhubarb should I use? I tried to keep my expectations as low as I could (though it was hard) because on many an occasion I’ve just ended up tossing the stuff that has got a backing of a hundred reviews.

strawberry rhubarb tart

So anyway, I chopped up gorgeous stalks of rhubarb, one green and one pink and tossed it with half a cup of sugar (you can adjust this depending on how tart your berries are and how sweet you’d like them to be) and frozen strawberries and let it sit for about 30 minutes. This way the frozen strawberries will soften and the tart rhubarb will absorb the sugar. This mixture tends to get watery, especially when using frozen berries, so just pick the filling up with the fork so the dough doesn’t get too mushy. Also, in the end you can top the syrup with some club soda and treat yourself to a strawberry-rhubarb fizz. It’s delicious.

For the tart base, I used the Ottolenghi recipe I used for the chocolate tart I made a while ago. To kick it up a notch, I used half vanilla bean sugar and half icing sugar. The dough smelled lovelier than any other dough I’d made before and looked so pretty with the tiny specs of vanilla in it. After this was refrigerated for a bit, I rolled it out into a large rectangle of about 1/8th inch thickness. Then I cut that up into 4 equal parts and placed the filling in the middle and pinched the sides together and transferred them to the baking sheet. That’s it! No fluted tart pans. No buying multiple small pans to make individual sizes. No worrying about blind baking. And if someone has the nerve to complain about the jagged edges, tell them that’s the rustic look you were trying to achieve. Besides, I actually think this rustic look is kinda cute.

strawberry rhubarb tart

So did it meet my expectations? It sure did! Everyone at home loved it, although they weren’t really fascinated about the big rhubarb discovery (I know!). The baked tart is not too sweet, and it’s not too tart, and though it would probably be nice with some vanilla ice cream, I’d like to eat mine warm and just the way it is.  I’m so happy that we finally get rhubarb here. Now I can start saving rhubarb recipes, which earlier, I only gawked at. Have you any suggestions?

Individual strawberry rhubarb tarts
Serves: 4

Tart base:
½ recipe of the Ottolenghi tart dough recipe.

Strawberry Rhubarb Filling:
2 stalks / 200 rhubarb, sliced with the skin on
200g strawberries, quartered fresh or frozen
½ cup / 100g caster sugar

Equipment:
Pastry blender and Bench scraper

Method:

  1. In a bowl stir together all the ingredients for the filling and let it sit together for 30 minutes.
  2. Roll out the dough into a rectangle of 1/8th inch thickness and cut through the centres to get 4 rectangles.
  3. Now place the filling in the centre of these individual rectangles.
  4. Try to work quickly, so the dough doesn’t get too warm and soft, making it harder to handle. Fold the edge of the dough toward the filling and up, to create a ruffled edge. Continue around the perimeter, until all of the filling has been held by the ruffled sleeve. Slide a bench scraper or spatula under the tart and transfer it to a parchment-lined baking tray.
  5. Freeze or refrigerate this for 30 minutes, or until the dough has firmed up.
  6. Bake in a preheated oven at 170C/340F for 25-30 minutes; until the pastry is golden and the juices are bubbling.
  7. Serve warm!

{ 17 comments }

Rich Chocolate Tart

May 7, 2010

Chocolate tart

I had been craving a chocolate tart for the longest time before I actually made one for myself. I didn’t want something that was simply filled with a soft ganache, but something a little more wicked: something with lots of cream and butter and eggs.

To fulfill this long standing hankering, I found the perfect tart filling recipe on Traveler’s Lunchbox and used the tart base recipe from the Ottolenghi cookbook (a cookbook so colourful, and so refreshing, I wish I used it more often.). The filling turned out to be soft, silky, and intensely chocolate-y; I don’t think I’m going to need another recipe for a chocolate tart. The key to is blind bake the tart, cool it, and then add the filling and bake until the sides look puffed up and the centre is still mushy. I refrigerated mine because I wanted the centre to set, but if you’d like a soft centre, you can eat it while it’s still warm.

This basic recipe can be spruced up depending on what you feel like on a particular day, or what’s in season on your side of the world. I can imagine them tasting so good with fresh raspberries or strawberries and a dollop of softly whipped cream. Another option would be to use your favourite liqueur in the chocolate batter. I used some hazelnut extract I made which was fantastic.

But you know the best part about making this chocolate tart? Watching my petite grandmum (who has an apetite of a bird) polish off two slices of the tart after her dinner! She loved it so much that when I shared it with a few friends the next day, she made me bake some more.

Chocolate tart

Rich Chocolate Tart
Yield: 1 8-9 inch tart

Tart shell
Adapted from: The Ottolenghi Cookbook (USA | UK | India)

In case you’re looking for tips on making the perfect tart dough, head over to Pie Dough 101.

Ingredients:

12 0z (330g) plain flour
3.5oz (100g) icing sugar
6 oz (180g) butter
1 egg yolk
2 tbsp cold water


Chocolate Filling

Adapted from: The Traveler’s Lunchbox

Ingredients:

8 oz (225g) dark chocolate
6 tablespoons (90g) butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/3 cup (80ml) heavy cream
1/4 cup (50g) sugar
1 teaspoon hazelnut extract
cocoa powder for dusting

Equipment:

a 9 inch (20-cm) tart pan
Pastry blender (optional)

Method:

  1. Put the flour and icing sugar into a bowl and rub the butter either with your finger with gentle, quick movements or with a pastry cutter until you achieve breadcrumb like texture. Add the egg yolks and cold water until the mixture comes together.
  2. Remove the dough from the bowl and knead gently. Flatten to form a thick disk and wrap it in cling film and chill it for at least an hour.
  3. Roll out the dough to 3-4 mm (1/8th inch) thickness and line the tart pan, making sure you press it well into the pan. Prick the dough with a fork and fill it up with dried beans and bake in a preheated oven at 170C/340F for about 17-20 minutes until it looks slightly golden and firm. Let it cool.
  4. For the filling: Melt the chocolate and butter in a saucepan over low heat, stirring until smooth, then remove from the heat and cool for 5 minutes. Whisk together the eggs, cream, sugar, and hazelnut extract in a bowl. Whisk the chocolate mixture into the egg mixture until combined.
  5. Pour the filling into the cooled crust. Bake until the filling 1 inch from edges is set and slightly puffed but center wobbles when pan is gently shaken, 20 to 25 minutes. (The center will continue to set as it cools.)
  6. Dust with cocoa powder when cool. Eat!

{ 32 comments }

Fig Tart with Vanilla Scented Frangipane

December 12, 2009

 Fig Tart with Vanilla Scented Frangipane

So I did two adventurous things today: One – baked with figs, which I have never done before. And two – succumbed to my aversion for frangipane (fancy schmancy French name for a mixture of ground almonds, sugar, eggs and vanilla).

Now it has got to be something that looks absolutely spectacular for me to want to change my mind about frangipane. For whenever a recipe called for it, I’d cross it off my list instantly since I didn’t like almond paste (or so I thought). The photo in question that made me take the plunge was that of the fig tart I saw on Chez Pim. And out of nowhere, a fig tart made it to the top priority in my mental to-bake list.
Fig Tart with Vanilla Scented Frangipane

And as you can sense already, I was mighty pleased with the results!  I made this fig tart for breakfast today and between the two of us, dad was the one who raced me to the last quarter.

I tried a new pie dough recipe this time from the Ottolenghi cookbook. It’s very similar to my regular pie dough recipe that you can use or instead pick your favourite pie dough recipe. Make sure to go through Pie Dough 101 for quick tips for the perfect pie crust. I used the frangipane recipe on Chez Pim and added half a vanilla bean to it – smelled so, so good (thanks to my reader D. who sent  the beans to me all the way from Bangalore)! Once you have your dough rolled out, just spread out the frangipane on it and place the sliced figs in concentric circles. Then fold the edges in and crimp it up. A little bit of egg wash and a little bit  of icing sugar dusted, it’s ready for the oven. Now bask in the sweet smell that envelopes the house for 40 minutes. Once ready, serve with a dollop of mascarpone cheese or a scoop of rich vanilla ice cream. Such an elegant dessert, but more than that it is a breakfast of the champions, indeed!

Fig Tart with Vanilla Scented Frangipane

Fig Tart with Vanilla Scented Frangipane
Yield: 1 9 inch fig tart
Adapted from: Chez Pim

Vanilla Scented Frangipane
(Just 1/4th going to be here)

½ cup / 75g whole almonds
1/3rd cup / 75g sugar
75g butter
1 large egg
½ a vanilla bean
  1. Preheat the oven to 350F (180C).  Spread the almonds evenly on a baking sheet and place them in the oven.  Roast them for about 10 minutes, or until slightly toasted and fragrant.  Transfer to a plate and let cool to room temperature.
  2. Put the cooled almonds and the sugar into a food processor and process until fine.  Add the butter and the egg and pulse until well-combined. Stir in the innards of the vanilla bean. If you don’t want to use it right away, divide the frangipane into four equal parts, wrap each tightly in plastic.  They will keep in the fridge for a couple of days, and upto a month in the freezer.  
9″ fig tart
1 9″ pastry dough
about 10 large figs or about 15 small ones
1/4 the recipe of frangipane above
Preheat the oven to 400F (200C). 
  1. Roll out your pastry dough to about 10-inch diameter. Prick a fork through it every inch or so apart.
  2. Place the dough on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
  3. Spread about 1/4 of the quantity of frangipane on the dough, leaving about 1 inch perimeter around the outer edge of the dough.  Slice the figs and place them from outside inwards to form concentric circles to cover the frangipane.
  4.  Fold the edges in, pinching a little to make sure they stick.  Brush the dough with eggwash and give it a good shower of sugar.  Bake for about 45-50 minutes, or until the pastry edges are golden brown.

{ 42 comments }