Kadota Fig Tarts with Strawberry and a Slice of Indigo

THE INDIGO PART ..

My daughter is growing so much, not just physically but mentally. We can now have small conversations and completely understand each other. It used to be I could never imagine how on earth she would be able to one day sing the alphabet, count to 10 or let me know when something hurts. Man she is such a pleasure, how lucky to watch all the pathways in her brain form without one day spent in an actual school yet.



Here are a few things Indigo can do now:

1. Sing Happy Birthday
2. Show empathy, she always asks “Mommy, are you ok?”
3. Take off her clothing (not always at good times might I add), she can also put them back on too.



THE TART PART ..



Sweet Tart Pastry, yum. My dad just recently sent me some new cooking pans for my birthday (I am 32 if you are curious). One of the pans was a mini muffin pan. When you get a new pan it is important to find just the right recipe for its first use. I already new I wanted to make mini-tarts of some sort so really I just needed a recipe that had ingredients I already had.

This recipe is found on AllRecipes.com. It is PERFECT. I can not say enough about how wonderful the taste and texture is. I even ate it raw since I am sort of a dough eating kind of gal. So sue me! I used the preserves I had on hand but you could fill them with whatever you like.

INGREDIENTS FOR TART DOUGH (makes 25-30) mini tarts or one large shell

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons white sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup unsalted butter, cubed
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

EXTRAS that I used: Kadota Fig preserves, strawberry slices. Be creative!

DIRECTIONS FOR DOUGH

Sift together the flour, sugar, and salt into a bowl. Toss butter through flour mixture to coat pieces. Using fingertips, rub butter into flour, working it until you have created a coarse meal with a few pea-size particles of butter.



Pour crumbs onto a cool surface. Form mixture into a mound. Make a 4 to 5 inch well in center of the mound. Combine egg and vanilla and pour mixture into the well. Using a fork, draw crumbs into egg mixture, about 1 - 2 tablespoons at a time. When you have formed a crumbly ball start massaging the dough until it forms a smooth ball, then flatten into a disc shape. I then refrigerated for one hour.



Lightly oil your mini tart pan and start pressing bits of your dough into the slots. I basically took a large quarter sized piece (round) placed it into the pan and then used my thumb to press a well in the center. I then pressed the edges up nicely and used a fork for the edges. Remember to also poke a few holes into the bottom of your tarts.



Bake these little guys at 425 for 12 minutes, just remove once edges are a golden brown. I filled them with the Kadota fig preserves and topped with a thinly slice fresh strawberry.

Tell them how adorable they are!



And here they are naked…he he



MAY YOU BE BLESSED THIS WEEKEND! My family is off to Disney! Wish us luck…we will need it with our “little human”. I realize it is Thursday so I am early but tomorrow promises to be very very busy.