Blackberry Mascarpone Tart

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Spring fever has struck me this week! Here in the South, Spring starts playing peek-a-boo with us right about now. The trees are starting to bud, the azaleas and dogwoods are beginning to break out. In the morning I'm reaching for a sweater, but by late afternoon, I'm contemplating breaking out the flip flops. I'm sooo ready for the flip flops but unfortunately I'll probably have to wait awhile to actually be able to wear them without my toes turning the color of these blackberries. Oh well I guess I have to settle for Spring desserts for now.

It may be a bit early to break out the flip flops but this blackberry tart is like Spring on a plate. This tart is not only absolutely delicious but so pretty it could be the center piece on your Easter table. Oh and did I mention, it couldn't be easier to make. Perfect!

Hello Spring!

Blackberry Mascarpone Tart
Printable Recipe

INGREDIENTS:
1 stick unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup almond flour*
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 8 ounce package of mascarpone
1 cup confectioner’s sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
3 cups blackberries
1/4 cup toasted almonds (optional)
powdered sugar, for dusting top

METHOD:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and the granulated sugar. Add in salt and flours and mix until just combined. Press dough into a 9 inch tart pan. Bake for 20 minutes, or until edges begin to brown. Allow to cool completely.

In an electric mixer bowl, fitted with the paddle attachment, combine cheese and confectioner’s sugar. Add the cream. When it is all incorporated, switch to the whisk attachment, and increase the speed to high. Whisk until stiff peaks form.

Remove tart shell from the pan. Spread the cheese filling into the shell. Place the blackberries on top of the mascarpone mixture. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Before serving sprinkle with toasted almonds, if desired, and dust top of tart with powdered sugar.

*This recipe is not only easy but very adaptable as well. The almond flour can be replaced with any finely ground nut or with regular flour but I recommend a nut flour. It makes this tart just a little extra special. The mascarpone can be replaced with cream cheese, but the tart won't be quite as luscious. Almost any berry can be substituted for the blackberries, strawberries would be fantastic.

The wild azaleas are in bloom in the woods behind my house....flip flops are sure to follow!

Strawberry Swirl Cream Cheese Pound Cake

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Spring has sprung here in the Southeast. I don't know what that means to you but for me it means strawberry season!  For many years, my parents grew strawberries on a commercial level. So as you can imagine, I've eaten a lot of strawberries, in almost anyway imaginable.  One of my favorite ways to use strawberries is to macerate them. Are you impressed by that term?? It's not nearly as impressive as it sounds. It's just sliced berries with sugar that sit until the juices release. We like to mash the berries slightly (I use a potato masher). We called mashed strawberries....fancy, I know, but that's just how we are around here.  At this point you can do anything with the mashed strawberries. They're delicious on top of ice cream, yogurt, pancakes, the list goes on, but pile them on top of a hunk of buttery pound cake maybe a bit of freshly whipped cream...simply wonderful!   

Last month's Southern Living featured a pound cake with strawberries swirled through it, on the cover.  When I read through the recipe it sounded delicious but called for a strawberry glaze for the swirl. I'm not a fan of strawberry glaze. It has a kind of artificially taste that I don't like. I decided to cook down some berries and make my own glaze to swirl in the cake. I was going to strain the berries and make a syrup more like the original recipe called for but I decided I liked the idea of having strawberry pieces baked into the cake. I could have my mashed berries baked right into the cake...perfect!

Strawberry Swirl Pound Cake

Source: Nancy H. Test, West Chester, Ohio, Southern Living 

MARCH 2011 (adapted)
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups butter, softened
3 cups sugar
1 (8-oz.) package cream cheese, softened
6 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon lemon zest

2/3 cup strawberry glaze
1 (6-inch) wooden skewer

Method:
Preheat oven to 350°. Beat butter at medium speed with a heavy-duty electric stand mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating at medium speed until light and fluffy. Add cream cheese, beating until creamy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Gradually add flour to butter mixture. Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition, stopping to scrape bowl as needed. Stir in the lemon zest, almond, and vanilla extracts. Pour one-third of batter into a greased and floured *10-inch 14 cup tube pan (about 2 2/3 cups batter). Dollop 8 rounded teaspoonfuls strawberry glaze over batter, and swirl with wooden skewer. Repeat procedure once, and top with remaining third of batter.

Bake at 350° for 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes or until a long wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 to 15 minutes; remove from pan to wire rack, and cool completely (about 1 hour).

Notes:*the original recipe said to use a 10-inch 14 cup tube pan but I used my 10-inch 12 cup bundt pan.

Strawberry Swirl

Strawberry Swirl

Ingredients:
2 cups strawberries(about 1 lb), quartered
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon corn starch

Method:
Combine the water, strawberries, sugar, and lemon juice in a large saucepan on high heat. Stir and bring up to a boil.
After the mixture begins to boil, reduce the heat to medium low. Cook for 5-8 minutes, until the strawberries have completely broken down.  As the strawberries soften, use a wooden spoon or potato masher to break up the berries. (At this point you could strain the strawberries through a sieve for a smooth glaze, but I decided to leave the bits of strawberry in mine.)
Meanwhile, whisk the cornstarch with 3 tablespoons of water in a small bowl. Then, pour into the strawberries.
Increase heat to high, and continue to whisk the mixture until it thickens and the cornstarch becomes clear and loses it's cloudy appearance, approximately 3-5 minutes.
Remove  from heat, and pour into separate bowl to cool down. Use 3/4 a cup to swirl in the cake. Any leftovers are great served along with the cake.

This is a BIG cake when it's done. With that lovely swirl of berries running through it, this cake would be perfect for our family Easter gathering. Can't wait for an excuse to make this again!

Strawberry swirl!

Wordless Wednesday

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Wordless Wednesday- Spring Cupcakes

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