Fig And Cream Cheese Tarts Recipes

FIG TART WITH CREAM CHEESE FILLING

Steps:

• Cream together butter and granulated sugar in bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, about 2 minutes. Add yolks, and mix just to combine. Whisk together dry ingredients, and add to yolk mixture; mix just until it comes together loosely. Transfer the dough to plastic wrap, press together, and transfer to the refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes, until firm.
• Prepare a 4 1/2-by-14-inch rectangular fluted tart tin with cooking spray. Roll out dough between two pieces of plastic wrap to about 1/8-inch thickness. Discard the top plastic wrap, and gently invert dough over the prepared tart tin. Discard the remaining piece of plastic wrap. Press dough into tin, and trim so dough is flush with edges. Repair tears or cracks by pressing together dough with your fingers. Place in the refrigerator to chill for about 30 minutes.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Prick crust all over with a fork, and bake on the middle rack of oven until crust begins to color, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven, and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. When cool, remove from the pan. Place on a serving platter or board.
• Place cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer, and beat until smooth. Add creme fraiche and confectioners' sugar, and beat until mixture is smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Transfer to the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes. Spread filling into cooled crust, and arrange figs on top, pressing them in slightly.
• To make glaze, combine the jam and wine in a small saucepan. Set over medium-high heat, and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat, and simmer until mixture is thick and syrupy, about 2 minutes. Cool slightly, and brush warm glaze over figs with a pastry brush. Chill the tart in the refrigerator if not serving right away. Serve within several hours.

FRENCH FIG TARTS

Steps:

• For the pastry, place the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Pulse a few times to combine. Add the butter and pulse 10 to 12 times, until the butter is the size of peas. With the motor running, pour the ice water down the feed tube and pulse just until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a floured board and knead quickly into a 5-inch-round flat disk. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for exactly 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
• On a floured board, roll the dough to a rectangle a little larger than 10-by-14 inches. Wrap the dough around your rolling pin and transfer it to the prepared pan. Using a ruler and a small knife, trim the dough to a 10-by-14-inch rectangle. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
• Remove the stem of each fig and cut them in quarters through the stem (or in sixths, if the figs are very large.) Place the figs in rows on the dough. Sprinkle with the full 1/2 cup of sugar and dot with the butter.
• Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, until the pastry is browned and the fruit starts to brown. Rotate the pan once during baking. If the pastry puffs up in one area, cut a little slit with a knife to let the air out. Don't worry! The juices will burn in the pan but the tart (and the pan!) will be fine! When the tart's done, loosen it from the pan while it's still warm and transfer it to a board or clean piece of parchment paper.
• In a small pan, heat the apricot jelly with 2 tablespoons water and brush the fruit and pastry completely with the mixture. Allow to cool, cut into squares, and serve warm or at room temperature.

FIG AND CREAM CHEESE TARTS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lightly dust with flour. Cut the puff pastry into 5 equal rectangles and lay out on the baking sheet. If the puff pastry rectangles become too soft, put the baking sheet in the refrigerator for 5-10 minutes to let them harden again. Spread the cream cheese evenly on top of each rectangle, leaving about a ½-inch space for the crust (I like using a small butter knife for this because it gives you the perfect angle without puncturing the puff pastry).
• Lay the fig halves, flesh side up, onto each puff pastry, about 3 per sheet. Crimp the edges of each puff pastry so that there's crust surrounding the figs. Lightly sprinkle the figs with the brown sugar, and brush the crusts of the puff pastry with the melted butter. Bake in the oven until the figs have cooked down and the crusts are golden brown, 20-25 minutes.

FIG, CREAM CHEESE AND MINT TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
• Roll out the pastry on a floured counter to the thickness of a 1-cent piece and use it to carefully line the pan. Homemade pastry is short and so will be quite crumbly. Don't be alarmed by this, you can patch it together in the pan. Take a small ball of the pastry (the size of a nickel) and use it to gently ease the dough down into the pan. Press the handle of a wooden spoon against the pastry all round the edges to coax it into the fluted grooves. Trim off the excess around the top and run a thin knife around between the pastry and the edge of the pan to loosen. Put in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes, or until firm.
• Remove the tart from the refrigerator. Take a piece of parchment paper slightly larger than the pan and scrunch it up, then unscrunch it and line the pan with it. Fill it with pie weights or dried beans and "blind bake" in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the pastry feels sandy to the touch. Remove the paper and bake for an additional 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.
• For the filling, put the cream in a bowl and whip until beginning to thicken, then fold it into the cream cheese and mix with the honey and Marsala, if using. Put the filling in the tart case, then arrange the figs on top and scatter over the nuts and mint. Serve with a sweet wine such as Asti.
• Figs and mint are delicious, so sprinkling some torn mint leaves over the tart works really well. This tart is best eaten on the day it is made.

FIG & BLUE CHEESE TART

Steps:

• First make the pastry. Tip the flours into a food processor with ½ tsp salt and the diced butter. Pulse until you can't feel any lumps, then tip in the walnuts. Mix the egg yolks with 3 tbsp cold water, then dribble this into the machine while you pulse again until the pastry comes together. Tip the pastry out onto a floured surface, lightly bring it together into a ball, then roll out and line a deep 20-23cm tart tin with overhang. The pastry may crack, but just patch it back together, then cover and chill for 1 hr.
• To make the filling, melt the remaining butter in a large pan, then add the shallots and soften for 10-15 mins, until golden and squishy. Stir in the thyme for 1 min, then remove from the heat. Beat the eggs in a jug with the crème fraîche and cream. Crumble in the cheese and season with pepper and a small amount of salt.
• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Blind bake the pastry for 20 mins, remove the baking beans and paper, then bake for a further 15-20 mins until golden and sandy. Reduce the oven temp to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Add the cooled onions to the cream mixture and pour into the case. Sit the fig halves on top, cut side up, sprinkle with some more thyme and bake on the middle shelf for 1 hr-1hr 10 mins until the tart is browning and has a slight wobble - the cheese middle will firm up on sitting. Cool for about 15-20 mins, then remove from tin and serve with a green salad.

FIG TARTLETS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Line a large baking sheet with baking parchment. Divide the pastry into 6 pieces. Roll out each piece to the thickness of a £1 coin and cut into a 11-12cm round, using a cutter or saucer as a guide. Place on the baking sheet and mark 1cm in from the edge, taking care not to cut right through the pastry. Fork over the pastry inside the marked line.
• Slice each fig and arrange, overlapping, inside the marked line of the tartlets. Brush with the butter and sprinkle with icing sugar. Can now be chilled for up to 5 hrs. Bake for 18-20 mins until the pastry is crisp and golden on the edges.
• Warm the jelly in a small pan, brush over the tartlets, then dust with more icing sugar. Serve warm from the oven or at room temperature, with Pistachio ice cream (see 'Goes well with...') or crème fraîche.