Category: Desserts

I had been looking forward to trying this for weeks. I usually can read over a recipe and quickly imagine what it will taste like and even whether or not we are likely to enjoy it. From the moment I saw this one, I thought it sounded fantastic. We LOVE Cara Cara oranges and, of course, we love caramel and figured that this dessert would be the perfect pairing of those two things. I had prepared it ahead of time and had it frozen, according to the recipe directions, waiting for the perfect night to bake it.

Frozen tart, before baking.
Well, I guess my recipe instincts were totally off, because this was just AWFUL. Terrible. Inedible, really. I did make some adaptations: I used Cara Cara instead of blood oranges and I realized, after assembly, that I probably didn’t slice the oranges as thinly as I was supposed to, because they didn’t get all shrively-dried looking like the ones in the magazine photo.

Honestly, the tart might not have been too bad on its own (or maybe with some vanilla ice cream), but I pretty liberally drizzled each serving with the salted caramel sauce, rendering it too salty for anyone (except maybe deer in search of a salt lick) to consume. The tart, though, for all the work that it required, really just wasn’t stellar. The best thing about this recipe was the crust/dough, which was flaky and sugar-crusted. The caramel would be good, too, without the salt (or with the quantity vastly reduced.) I might try to make this tart again with berries, because the dough really was delicious, but the recipe, as is? No, just NO.

This recipe is from Martha Stewart’s magazine, but it’s not on her website, so I found a link here.
This was VERY easy and very tasty. All four of us really enjoyed it. I adore Bananas Foster, but Hubby has a serious rum aversion (an instance of over-indulgence in Belize MANY years ago has permanently scarred him), so I’ve never made it for the family. When I saw this recipe, I thought it might be a way to serve the kids cooked bananas without forcing Hubby to endure the rum.
Make sure that you use dishes that are wide enough; mine were a little small, so the bananas didn’t lie as flat and look as pretty as Martha’s did in the original photo, which you can barely see here:

Mine still looked OK, though, and you know what Julia Child said…”It’s so beautifully arranged on the plate, you know someone’s fingers have been all over it.”
Speaking of plates, isn’t this one just the most perfect thing EVER? This came as a set, with the bowls, and is probably meant to serve condiments or snacks, but for a family of four, it can be for ANYTHING. I love Target.

(That’s the ricotta, before I put the bananas in.)
I digress. Use the water specified in the recipe VERY sparingly. I used a bit to much and ended up with a bit of a “sauce”, rather than a crust, but it was still delicious. It also took a few minutes longer to cook in my oven than the recipe directed, so just watch it very carefully as it cooks. Quite yummy and actually fairly healthy.

adapted from a Betty Crocker recipe
Lemon Custard:
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 Tbsp cornstarch
3/4 cup cold water
3 egg yolks
1 Tbsp grated lemon zest
3 Tbsp lemon juice
Cake:
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
5 eggs
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp grated lemon zest
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted
(250 degrees for 2 to 3 minutes – watch them VERY carefully to prevent burning)
Two possible garnish options:
a sprinkle of powdered sugar
OR
Make a glaze of 4 Tbsp lemon juice and enough powdered sugar to make a drizzling consistency (about 1 cup). Drizzle over cake, using a fork. Sprinkle each glazed cake slice with a tiny bit more grated lemon zest.
1. In small, heavy saucepan, whisk together 1/4 cup of the granulated sugar and the cornstarch. Stir in water and egg yolks with a wire whisk until well mixed and no lumps remain. Heat to boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture begins to thicken. Cook and stir 1 minute, remove from heat. Stir in 1 Tbsp lemon zest and the lemon juice. Refrigerate, uncovered, 20 minutes, stirring once, until room temperature.
2. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottom and side of a 9-inch springform pan with butter; lightly flour. In large bowl, beat butter and 1 cup granulated sugar with electric mixer on medium speed about 1 minute or until smooth.
3. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until just blended, then continue beating on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl once. On low speed, beat in flour, 2 tsp lemon zest, the baking powder and vanilla about 30 seconds or until just blended.
4. Spread half of cake batter (about 2 cups) in bottom of pan. Spoon custard evenly onto batter, spreading to 1/2 inch of edge. Drop remaining batter by tablespoonfuls around edge of custard and pan. Spread batter evenly and toward center to cover custard. Sprinkle pine nuts over top.
5. Bake 45 to 55 minutes or until center is set, cake is firm to the touch and top is golden brown. Cool in pan on wire rack at least 1 hour (center will sink slightly). Run think knife around side of cake; remove side of pan. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving. Serve warm or cool. Store covered in refrigerator.
Makes 12 servings.