I’m a chocolate girl. Many of you already know this about me. If it’s dessert, it should be chocolate. Except this time of year. The berries are getting good now and I am loving them!
My mom is not a chocolate girl. Obviously my chocolate gene came from the other side. So, for Mother’s Day, I ditched the brownies and cake, and made my mom a berry tart. I knew exactly what I wanted. Didn’t want it too sweet, or too goopy. I wanted the fruit to be the star. And I know kiwis aren’t berries, but they go well with berries, and they look so pretty! This recipe is simple, bringing out the sweetness of the berries, without a lot of added sugar. Make sure you get nice ripe berries. I got lucky at my fruit stand, they had fresh sun-ripened strawberries that tasted like they’d been dipped in sugar, perfect kiwis, and some of the biggest, juiciest blueberries I’ve ever seen!
And just for good measure, there is a little chocolate. It is dessert after all.
Mom’s Berry Tart
Mom’s Berry Tart
1 pie crust
4-5 oz. bittersweet chocolate (I used Ghirardelli)
1 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. heavy cream
1 package cream cheese
2 tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract
1 cup strawberries, sliced
1 cup Blueberries
2 kiwis, sliced
Blueberry Glaze (optional)
2 tbsp. blueberry jelly (or you could use a different fruit flavor)
1 tbsp. sugar
1/4 cup water
1 tsp. cornstarch
Spread pie crust out on a round tart pan or pizza pan, gently stretch to fit if necessary. Stab with a fork all over and bake at 400˚ for 8-9 minutes. Let cool. In a small glass bowl, break up chocolate. Add butter and cream. Microwave for 1 minute. Stir until smooth. Pour over pie crust and spread to cover. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes to cool and harden. In a bowl, combine cream cheese, 2 tbsp. sugar, vanilla and almond extract. Beat with a mixer or whisk until smooth and creamy. Spread over chocolate layer in pie crust. Arrange sliced fruit and berries in a pretty pattern on top.
You can stop here if you’d like. If you want to take it a step further, make a quick berry glaze by combining blueberry jelly, sugar, water and cornstarch in a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk well to make sure you don’t have cornstarch lumps. Stir constantly while you bring the mixture to a boil. Cook and stir for a minute or two after boiling until thickened and bubbly. Pour over fruit tart. Chill. Cut into wedges and serve.
Mom’s Berry Tart with Blueberry Glaze
3hungrymonkeys 