raspberry rhubarb tartlets

Who doesn’t want a tartlet after dinner? Or as a decadent breakfast? Or snacked on happily in the afternoon? Well, the answer is me apparently because I have eaten these darn tartlets for all of the above. I am captivated, and hungry.

The hunger originates from a great week, but a week filled with so much activity that I came home each evening exhausted from mental fatigue. My desire to cook, bake and be creative has taken a back burner to everything new related to planning our wedding, starting a new job and temperatures reaching 100 degrees ore more. Despite all of my hangups (and complaining…poor Ryan) I woke up a few days ago READY TO BAKE. It was about time.

Let’s not discuss the exact hour, for it was early, but it allowed me enough time to use the pate brise in my refrigerator to make eight adorable little tarts. Making free form tarts, or galettes, is as easy as rolling out an imperfect circle of dough, piling up fresh fruit mixed with sweetener and starch (to soak up some of the juices), rolling up the edges of the dough and baking. Baking can be so satisfying: you follow a recipe, let the oven do its work and viola! Instant gratification. Something I needed this week as much as I needed a flaky, raspberry rhubarb tartlet.

mini rhubarb and raspberry galettes
adapted from Martha Stewart’s New Pies and Tarts
yields 8 mini galettes

1 recipe pate brisee (recipe below)
1-1/2 pounds trimmed rhubarb, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
8 ounces fresh raspberries
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 cups granulated sugar
coarse sanding sugar, for sprinkling (optional)

Divide the pate brisee dough into eight equal pieces. Roll out each piece, on a lightly floured surface, to form a 7-inch round.  Prepare two rimmed baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper.  Transfer the rolled dough to the prepared baking sheets, arranging each several inches apart.

In a large bowl, combine the rhubarb, raspberries, cornstarch and sugar tossing gently to distribute the ingredients.

Measure 1/2 cup of filling and place in the center of one of the rounds, leaving at least a 1-inch border.  Repeat for the other seven tartlets.  Fold the edges over the filling, leaving an opening in the center.  To help the dough stick to itself, brush the insides of the folds with water and press together gently.  Refrigerate or freeze until firm, abut 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Brush the edges of the dough with water and sprinkle with the sanding sugar, if using.  Bake until the crusts are golden brown, about 30 minutes.  Reduce the heat to 375 and bake until the juices bubble and start to run out from the centers of the tarts, about 15 minutes more.  Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely before serving.

pate brisee
adapted from Martha Stewart’s New Pies and Tarts
yields enough for two 9-inch single-crust pies or 8 mini tarts

2-1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold, cut into small pieces
1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water

In the bowl of a food processor pulse the flour, salt and sugar. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal, with some larger pieces remaining. Drizzle 1/4 cup water over the mixture. Pulse until the mixture just begins to hold together (it may look too dry — that’s alright). If dough looks very dry, add more water one tablespoon at a time until the dough begins to take shape.

Place a long piece of plastic wrap on a work surface and dump out the dough from the food processor bowl. Use the wrap to shape the dough into a flat disk and wrap tightly. Refrigerate for up to a week or freeze for up to three months.