Every spring the Alliance of the Swope Art Museum throws a wonderful cocktail party to raise money for the Swope. They sell raffle tickets for three works of art by local artist and then announce the winners after everyone is sated by a huge buffet of homemade delicacies. This was my first time to attend the event and it was a lot of fun: the Alliance raised some money; everyone socialized and had some great treats; and three people went away with some very cool art.
The right tools help: I love cooking spray with flour for baked goods; the rolling pin my mother gave me for Christmas a couple of years ago with guards that help you get the dough to the correct thickness; my tart tamper; and high quality circle cutters.The Alliance members all sign up to "bring a double recipe of a sweet or savory on a disposable serving piece, ready to serve." My friend Kathy brough a pesto torte, with layers of cheese, pesto and sun-dried tomatoes served as an impressive tower of power. I personally saw four people ask her for the recipe and once I have it in my clutches, you will have it as well. I wanted to pitch in too, so I made one of my favorites, Artichoke Tartlets. No one asked for the recipe, but I'm giving it to you here anyways. Make it and tell me how much you love it. Or, lie to me and tell me you made it and how much you love it.
Recipe: Artichoke Tartlets aka Death Tarts*This recipe uses a wonderful dough I developed from a couple of sources and my favorite artichoke spread. The cream cheese makes the pastry easy to work with and extra delicious. I posted the recipe for the spread not long ago, but for this use I puree it a little more so it smoother and easier to get into the shells. The trick: make the spread and put it in a large Ziplock bag and chill in the refrigerator. When you're ready to fill the tartlets, snip off a corner of the bag and just pipe the artichoke deliciousness right in. Best thing, these can be made the night before and chilled, then put right into the oven so you can serve them fresh and warm to your guests.
For the crust:
4 ounces of chilled cream cheese, cut into four large cubes
6 ounces of chilled butter, cut in tablespoon size pieces
Pinch of salt
1 cup of flour
2-4 tsp of ice water
For the filling:
This recipe, pureed a little smoother.
In a food processor, combine the cream cheese, butter, salt and flour using the pulse feature until pearl-sized pieces are formed. Alternating, you can use a pastry knife or two knives together to cut the cream cheese and butter into the flour, but it will take a lot longer.
With the machine running, add 1 tsp of ice water until the dough pulls together. Remove from the processor and form into a small disc, chill for thirty minutes or longer.
When ready, roll the sough to 1/8 inch thickness and cut out 24 two or two-and-a-quarter-inch circles. Place these on top of a mini-muffin tin and press into the tin using your hands or a tart tamper. Fill with Parmesan spread and chill for 15 to 20 minutes. You can top each tartlet with an extra sprinkling of cheese if you wish.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake the tartlets for twenty to twenty-five minutes, until golden brown.
Makes 24.
4 ounces of chilled cream cheese, cut into four large cubes
6 ounces of chilled butter, cut in tablespoon size pieces
Pinch of salt
1 cup of flour
2-4 tsp of ice water
For the filling:
This recipe, pureed a little smoother.
In a food processor, combine the cream cheese, butter, salt and flour using the pulse feature until pearl-sized pieces are formed. Alternating, you can use a pastry knife or two knives together to cut the cream cheese and butter into the flour, but it will take a lot longer.
With the machine running, add 1 tsp of ice water until the dough pulls together. Remove from the processor and form into a small disc, chill for thirty minutes or longer.
When ready, roll the sough to 1/8 inch thickness and cut out 24 two or two-and-a-quarter-inch circles. Place these on top of a mini-muffin tin and press into the tin using your hands or a tart tamper. Fill with Parmesan spread and chill for 15 to 20 minutes. You can top each tartlet with an extra sprinkling of cheese if you wish.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake the tartlets for twenty to twenty-five minutes, until golden brown.Makes 24.
*The new nickname for these little guys comes from the Alliance and a reference to Star Wars. It's not that funny, but I had to include it for those people who will get the joke.