Mardi Gras Mini Tarts /#Mardi Gras

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It is almost Mardi Gras time, and even though I have not participated in this fun and tasty celebration in New Orleans, I am celebrating at home this year with these yummy Mardi Gras Mini Tarts. This is one of the simplest desserts you will ever make.

I made a vanilla pastry cream and filled some store bought, mini butter shortbread tart shells. Add green, purple, and gold sprinkles and some little ball sprinkles in the same colors to give the tarts a festive look! 

Even though I purchased the pastry shells, I needed to make the cream ahead of time. It needs time to chill before serving, so I started about 24 hours before my "test kitchen eaters" could try them out. The cream was smooth and tasted amazing!

Mardi Gras Mini Tarts

(printable recipe at end of page)

(makes approx. 15-20 mini tarts)

2 cups Milk

1/4 cup White Sugar

2 Egg Yolks

1 Egg

1/4 Cornstarch

1/3 cup White Sugar

2 tbl. Butter

1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Mini Tart Shells

Purple, Green, and Gold Sugars

Purple, Green, and Gold Edible Decor Balls

Make the pastry cream by mixing together the milk and 1/4 cup of sugar. Bring it to a boil over medium heat. 

Use a medium bowl to whisk together the egg yolks and egg. Add the remaining sugar and cornstarch and stir them into the egg until smooth. Once the milk comes to a boil, drizzle it into the bowl in a thin stream, stirring constantly. You don't want the eggs to cook.  Place the sauce back into the saucepan and slowly bring it to a boil, stirring constantly so the eggs don't curdle.

Once the mix comes to a boil and thickens, take it off the heat. Stir the butter and vanilla in, mix until the butter is completely blended in. Pour into a heat-proof container and place a piece of plastic wrap on the surface of the pastry cream, preventing a skin to form. Refrigerate until chilled before using.

Using the mini tarts, fill each tart with the pastry cream. Place a little more pastry cream into the tarts than is shown in the picture. They look great when the cream is to the top, with a bit extra cream in the center.

Mix together some green sprinkles, gold shimmer sugar and purple sugar in a bowl.

Cover the cream in the tart with the sprinkles that were mixed together. 

Add some larger candy balls in mardi gras colors and enjoy this yummy treat!

Thank you for joining me today! I hope you found some Mardi Gras inspiration, and you try these Mini Tarts!

 

Continue down the page for more great ideas for celebrating Mardi Gras from some blogging friends.

Zombie Cocktail by A Day in the Life on the Farm

King Cake Cupcakes by Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks

Homemade Beignets by Jen Around the World

Bananas Foster Bread by Jolene's Recipe Journal

Ramos Gin Fizz by Our Good Life

Cajun Pasta Carnivale by Palatable Pastime

Mardi Gras Mini Tarts by The Freshman Cook

King Cake Bundt Cake by The Redhead Baker

Voodoo Daiquiri by The Spiffy Cookie

Thank you for stopping by today! There is a printable recipe below for an easy way to keep a copy of this tasty recipe!

Apple Brickle Mini Tarts w/an Oatmeal Crust /#appleweek

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Today starts a fun-filled week here at The Freshman Cook! It is Apple Week! Apple Week is full of applelicious recipes from myself and my blogger friends, and there is a fun giveaway that starts today! Thank you to Rainier Fruit and Flahaven's Irish Oatmeal for the products used in today's recipe post! There are some amazing prizes, and I know you will want to enter! At the end of this post you will find info on how to enter to win some great prizes! 
Thank you to Carlee from Cooking with Carlee for all the long hours and hard work it took to put #appleweek together. 

Thank you to #AppleWeek Sponsors: Rodelle, Dreamfarm, Casabella, Flahavan's Irish Oatmeal, Pryex, Chicago Cutlery, Rainier Fruit, and Veggie Wash for providing prizes for #AppleWeek free of charge. These companies also provided the bloggers with samples and product to use for #AppleWeek. All opinions are my own.
 
The very first recipe I cooked for my husbands extended family, after we were married, was a traditional apple crisp. It was always one of my favorite fall recipes. Everything went well, it tasted great, and they ate every bite. I figured it was good luck! So, I try to bake one every year! But this year, I decided to branch out a little and put a special twist on my old favorite. These Apple Brickle Mini Tarts w/ an Oatmeal Crust taste just like my old fave, but they definitely have a fun, new look. I know you are going to like them!

 Apple Brickle Mini Tarts w/ an Oatmeal Crust
(printable recipe at end of page)
(makes 12 tarts)
 Oatmeal Crust
2/3 cup firmly packed Dark Brown Sugar
1/3 cup Flour
1 cup Flahavan's Irish Oatmeal
1 teaspoon Roasted Cinnamon
pinch of Nutmeg
2 tablespoons Butter

Apple Filling 
2 Rainier Honeycrisp Apples
1/4 cup Sugar
2 teaspoon Flour
1/4 teaspoon Cinnamon
pinch of Nutmeg
Brickle Bits
Caramel Chips

Make the crust by mixing the dark brown sugar, flour, oatmeal, roasted cinnamon, and nutmeg. Regular cinnamon can be used also.

Add butter and mix together.

It will all come together like this. Sometimes when I don't feel like the spoon is doing the job, I put on disposable gloves for cooking, and mix the ingredients together with my hands. It's so much easier!

Start measuring out the amount needed for your pan. Mine needed 1 tablespoon and 2 teaspoons for each cup. Then roll each separate amount into a ball as shown. 

Place a ball into each spot in the pan for the crust. I realize not everyone has this type of pan. You could also make this in a regular cupcake tin or even a mini cupcake tin. You just have to figure out how much dough you will need for each crust. The best way to do that is to practice making a couple until you are happy with the size. 

Use a pestle or something similar to create a whole in the center of the dough. Try to insert the pestle in the middle, so all the sides are of equal size.

Peel the apples and cut into small, little chunks. You want then to be able to fit in to the cups. Add the sugar, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg to the bowl with the apples. Mix together.

Fill each cup with the apple mix. Press them down in to the cup as you are filling them. I think it looks nice with a couple apples sticking out so they can be seen! After each cup is filled, go around to each cup again and sprinkle just a little bit of the brickle bits on the top.

Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 20 minutes. As a general rule, when I am making a new recipe, I usually set my timer for 5 minutes less than recommended. I check it, and usually pop it back in the oven. That insures that I never burn my food. After all, all ovens are different.
When your cups are done, remove them from the oven, let them cool for approx. 10 minutes. Then remove them from the pan, and let them cool completely on a cooling rack.

I melted the caramel chips on the stove top, and then drizzled the caramel over each tart as I served them. They tasted great!
Thanks so much for joining me today and for participating in the first day of #appleweek! Scroll down to find lots more apple recipes, a printable copy of this recipe, and info on entering the giveaway!

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Find many more fun and yummy apple recipes below:


Apple Bacon Turkey Burgers from Jonesin' for Taste

 Apple Brickle Mini Tarts with Oatmeal Crust from The Freshman Cook

 Apple Cinnamon Baked Oatmeal from Amy's Cooking Adventures

 Apple Cobbler French Toast Casserole from Tip Garden

 Apple Fritter Yeast Bread from House of Nash Eats

Apple Oatmeal Coffee Mug Cake from Corn, Beans, Pigs and Kids

Apple Pecan Chicken Salad from The Chef Next Door

 Apple Pie Steel Cut Oatmeal from Cooking With Carlee

 Cinnamon Apple Cider Sangria from The Redhead Baker

 Creamy Maple Gouda Apple Soup with Pecan-Oat Granola  from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
 
Healthy Apple Muffins from Caroline's Cooking

Individual Apple Cranberry Galettes with Caramel Drizzle  from Family Around the Table

 Mulled Apple Cider from Books n' Cooks

 Oatmeal Applesauce Muffins from A Day in the Life on the Farm

 Oatmeal Crusted Apple Stuffed French Toast from Jolene's Recipe Journal

Roasted Apple and White Cheddar Soup from 4 Sons 'R' Us

 Salted Caramel Apple Cake from Grumpy's Honeybunch

 Savory Apple Sausage Tart from The Crumby Kitchen

 Vanilla Brined Pork Chops with Applesauce  from Bear & Bug Eats

 Swedish Apple Oatmeal Pie with Vanilla Sauce from All That's Jas

 Torta di Mele Sicilian Apple Cake from Girl Abroad


Here is info on the giveaway and what you have to do to enter: 

Click on "a rafflecopter giveaway" at the end of this incredible list of great prize packs to enter.

Prize Pack #1 from Rodelle:

A baker's dream come true! This delicious prize pack includes premium vanilla products, gourmet dutch-processed cocoa and specialty extracts. Items include: Pure Vanilla Extract, Gourmet Dutch-Processed Baking Cocoa, Gourmet Vanilla Extract, Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla Beans, Organic Vanilla Extract, Organic Chocolate Extract, Almond Extract, Vanilla Paste, and some fun baking supplies to whip up your next batch of goodies with!


 Prize Pack #2 from Dreamfarm and Casabella:

Items include: a 2 'n 1 veggie brush a clip n strip shears a set up levups a set of levoons


Prize Pack #3 from Flahavan's Irish Oatmeal:

A goodie basket of Flahavan's items

Prize Pack #4 from Pyrex and Chicago Cutlery:

A Prime™ by Chicago Cutlery® 7 Slot Digital Tablet Holder Block

Prize Pack #5 from Rainier Fruit:

A prize pack from Rainier Fruit including a box of freshly harvested Rainier Fruit apples, a stainless steel apple slicer, apple corer, "Baked with Love" ceramic pie pan, copper apple loaf pan and a $25 Williams Sonoma gift card!

Prize Pack #6 from Veggie Wash:

A prize pack from Veggie Wash

a Rafflecopter giveaway



 

Author: The Freshman Cook

Apple Brickle Mini Tarts w/an Oatmeal Crust

INGREDIENTS:

Oatmeal Crust

• 2/3 cup firmly packed Dark Brown Sugar
• 1/3 cup Flour
• 1 cup Flahavan's Irish Oatmeal
• 1 teaspoon Roasted Cinnamon
• pinch of Nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons Butter

Apple Filling

• 2 Rainier Honeycrisp Apples
• 1/4 cup Sugar
• 2 teaspoon Flour
• 1/4 teaspoon Cinnamon
• pinch of Nutmeg
• Brickle Bits
• Caramel Chips

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Make the crust by mixing the dark brown sugar, flour, oatmeal, roasted cinnamon, and nutmeg. Regular cinnamon can be used also.
2. Add butter and mix together.
3. It will all come together like this. Sometimes when I don't feel like the spoon is doing the job, I put on disposable gloves for cooking, and mix the ingredients together with my hands. It's so much easier!
4. Start measuring out the amount needed for your pan. Mine needed 1 tablespoon and 2 teaspoons for each cup. Then roll each separate amount into a ball as shown.
5. Place a ball into each spot in the pan for the crust. I realize not everyone has this type of pan. You could also make this in a regular cupcake tin or even a mini cupcake tin. You just have to figure out how much dough you will need for each crust. The best way to do that is to practice making a couple until you are happy with the size.
6. Use a pestle or something similar to create a whole in the center of the dough. Try to insert the pestle in the middle, so all the sides are of equal size.
7. Peel the apples and cut into small, little chunks. You want then to be able to fit in to the cups. Add the sugar, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg to the bowl with the apples. Mix together.
8. Fill each cup with the apple mix. Press them down in to the cup as you are filling them. I think it looks nice with a couple apples sticking out so they can be seen! After each cup is filled, go around to each cup again and sprinkle just a little bit of the brickle bits on the top.
9. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 20 minutes. As a general rule, when I am making a new recipe, I usually set my timer for 5 minutes less than recommended. I check it, and usually pop it back in the oven. That insures that I never burn my food. After all, all ovens are different. When your cups are done, remove them from the oven, let them cool for approx. 10 minutes. Then remove them from the pan, and let them cool completely on a cooling rack.
10. I melted the caramel chips on the stove top, and then drizzled the caramel over each tart as I served them. They tasted great!

http://www.thefreshmancook.com/2017/09/apple-brickle-mini-tarts-wan-oatmeal.html

Created using The Recipes Generator

Orange Creamsicle Mini Tarts

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It's reveal day for Club Baked !! This time around we made the Orange Creamsicle Tart from the book we are baking from; Baked Explorations, written by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. I just love this tart. I think this is only the second time I have made a tart, the first time being many moons ago! I decided to go with mini tarts because I didn't have a tart pan, and when I went to buy one, the mini pans were just sitting there, begging me to take them home!! They are just so cute!!  Besides, the smaller size is more practical for me, and I hope to make them again.
This recipe was not difficult, but it was time consuming. Definitely not something you can just whip together. It takes a lot of time for the filling to set up, and chill, and then chill again. Very hands on. The dough has to chill, bake, bake again, and cool. Not hard, but not the treat to make when you don 't have a lot of time. But when you do have some time, it is definitely worth the effort!

Orange Creamsicle Tart

Our hostess for the creamsicle tart is 

Jenn from Baked:Who Wants The Yum Yums?

Visit her blog to get the complete recipe.

I creamed,

and mixed,

rolled out,

and chilled.

I pressed,

and baked,

cooled,

and coated.

Then I beat,

and decorated,

and decorated again.

This was delicious and fun!

Interested in what everyone had to say about the 

Orange Creamsicle Tart?

Stop by Club Baked and see how their tarts turned out!

Thanks for joining me!

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