No Bake Almond Cream Tartlets (with vegan and gluten-free options)

I have tried to write this post so many times but can't seem to figure out what to say. Disappearing from this blog for five-ish months was not in any way intentional, and I hope I have not lost any of you along the way. Life sort of took over, and I decided to just let it. I took my final finals ever in April. I graduated law school mid-May then left town for a road trip from Atlanta to San Diego to help a friend move. When I got back, I immediately began studying for the bar exam. I started a new job mid-June. I went home to Texas mid-July and took the bar exam at the end of July. Then about a week and half ago, I moved from my condo to a house, and here we are.

I baked quite a bit throughout all the foregoing madness, played with new-to-me ingredients, had many a failure, and many sweet and satisfying successes. The more I think about it though, my absence here wasn't just a result of being busy in real life (and I hate when people complain/brag about being busy anyway). I also spent some time just thinking about my food, how I want this little internet space of mine to move forward, the conversation I want to contribute to, and generally how I want to live my food life, both savory and sweet. I have so much that I want to share, and my thoughts will come out in due course. For now though, I am back with tartlets.

Apple Crumb Tartlets with Speculoos Crust

Sometimes I just need to get away, need a break from the usual, a change of scenery, some new views, that sort of thing. So I am very happy to be in Texas for a couple of weeks. I've had leisurely mornings and wine infused evenings. I've made cranberry jam and buttermilk cake and learned how to use Dad's new smoker.

Looking out and seeing pasture and horses and trees and little else relieves me. I love being able to sit on the porch or walk around outside and hear no cars or other city sounds. Or head to Denton square and wander around with a friend. And plan a slew of cookies to bake. Dale arrives on Sunday. And thank goodness because I am in dire need of good coffee. Plus, he's pretty good company.

Before I left Atlanta, I was determined to bake some tartlets and a chocolate cake. The cake will come later. For now, I have these tartlets for you. They came out of an urging for apple pie. I do love apple pie--warm and comforting and fulfilling.

Sometimes though, I want a little crumble in place of the pie crust. Since I'd made speculoos a day or two earlier, I decided to incorporate them via a cookie tartlet crust. Because how could that be bad?

BLT Tartlets

Did y'all do anything for the opening ceremonies of the Olympics last Friday? Any themed festivities? Or are y'all not as cheesy as I am?

Well, I had a few people over for some English themed noshing and beering. We had a ploughman's, complete with pickled onions, Stilton, Sweet Red Onion Chutney, and Colman's mustard. I got some English beers. One brewed in North Yorkshire where my mom is from. For dinner, my boyfriend fried up some fish and I baked up some potato wedges until crispy for fish and chips. And for dessert I made a traditional English trifle, using Harvey's Bristol Cream sherry pursuant to my mom's instructions. It was awesome and festive, and I loved it.

I've sort of come to terms with my cheese ball tendencies, especially when they result in epic themed meals and an excuse to drink leftover sweet sherry for dessert.

My boyfriend's mom was also in town. And she brought with her a bunch of peppers and potatoes and two huge bags of gorgeous heirloom tomatoes of all sizes from her garden in Virginia. Such a nice mom!

We used the potatoes for the chips in the fish and chips, and a bunch of her tomatoes were quickly gobbled up off the ploughman's.

Needless to say, I've been eating tons of tomatoes. Sprinkled with leftover Stilton. Some with a bit of balsamic. And some just popped in my mouth for a walking-through-the-kitchen snack. I also made gazpacho and pasta sauce and these tartlets! [As I said, I have a thing for themes...]

Rose Water Tartlets with Vanilla Sugared Berries

I have horrible luck transporting tartlets. I've been trying to figure out why I have this problem, and I think it stems from my serious love of these things. (Because I do have a serious freaking love of tartlets.) It's like I try to be too careful, which results in me overcompensating, which results in exploded tartlets inside my pastry carrier--smears of pastry cream, runaway berries, broken tart shells--and a sad me. It's not a pretty sight folks. Delicious, yes. But definitely not pretty. Unless you're into that whole abstract, deconstructed dessert thing. Then tart explosions are for you! For me, though, they only result in something like a toddler who lost her mom at the grocery store. And as an adult woman, that, too, is not pretty.

Anyway, can we talk about how pastry cream is this amazingly magical thing. So easy to make yet so incredibly satisfying and delicious and adaptable. I want to do a million different things with pastry cream, make a million different versions of pastry cream, put a million different things on and in pastry cream, and, ya know, eat it out of a cute bowl with berries and a spoon...

[In retrospect, perhaps that also contributes to my transportation problem--I get a tad overzealous when filling tartlet shells with pastry cream, thinking I can fit much more than I actually can. Not good for transporting. But very good for eating.]

Cherry Plum Clafoutis Cups

Well hello June, it's nice to see you!

I like June.

June brings good things.

Official summer things. Like sun and heat. Dresses and sandals. Iced coffee and cold treats. Farmers markets and summery fruits.

You should know something about me. I have this thing with fruit. I eat fruit for breakfast. I fulfill my snacking needs with fruit. I make fruit fit swimmingly well with lunch, perhaps in a salad or on peanut butter, and into dinner, perhaps roasted and thrown in pasta. I always want fruit in my dessert, in any form really. And have we discussed how a $3 bag of Georgia peaches causes grabbings for bourbon? It's sort of a problem. Onto cherries and plums!

Let's toss them in a shortcrust, cover them in custard, and make clafoutis. Clafoutis is a French cake-like custardy dessert, traditionally made with cherries and without a crust in a full size tart pan or pie plate. But because plums look like giant cherries sans stems and because mini versions of things bring happiness and because I just love short dough so freaking much, let's make cutie clafoutis! Let's call them clafoutis cups! Yes, let's.