Red Jewels

Well, its' Tuesday again and the assignment this week from the "Tuesdays with Dorie" (forever to be known as "TWD") group was a beautiful, jewel like and refreshing summer tart. The La Palette's Strawberry Tart is on page 374 in "Baking From My Home To Yours" by Dorie Greenspan.

The sweet dough or pate sable in this case, was buttery, tender, and sandy just as it should be. Since this dough tends to crumble easily I chose to make single serving tartlets (3 3/4 inches) instead of the 9 inch tart. However, I can easily imagine this dessert even smaller, perhaps a single bite size (2 1/4 inch) as well. What a nice presentation that would make on any dessert platter. I made the dough two days earlier since I never know how the work week will go and stored it in the refrigerator. This also gave the dough plenty of time to rest and firm up since the weather in this neck of the woods was sweltering all week.

The dough is pressed into the tartlet pans and docked, to help prevent shrinkage and puffing. I then pre-baked half the batch until they were golden. The other half I just had to play around with! I took a tablespoon of Creme d'amandes (almond cream) and spread it over the pate sable (heavenly all on it's own). Then I baked it in a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

The shells without the almond cream are spread with a layer of a good quality strawberry jam. Now the shells are ready for assembly. I tossed cut up strawberries with cherry brandy and spooned them over the shells. A little sprinkle with fresh ground pepper and viola! I'm sure some sweetened whipped cream or fresh churned icecream would be a perfect side.

Simply sublime!