Pies & Tarts

Peach Dumplings are easy to make from scratch. Wrap fresh peach halves in flaky dough then bake them in a simple brown sugar syrup for built-in sauce. Serve these beauties with a scoop of ice cream for a wonderful summer treat. Like tomatoes, peaches really are only worth eating when they’re in season. I eat as …

Ratatouille Galette is a hearty and wholesome free-form pie made with whole wheat crust and lots of garden-fresh vegetables. As I’ve said many times, give me any form of fruit wrapped in a crisp crust and I’m a happy camper. Well, I’ll expand that sentiment to include veggies wrapped in a crisp crust. Ratatouille is …

Chocolate Cherry Cheesecake Tart! You know a dessert that combines those flavors will be decadently delicious. “Tart Michel” is a perfect balance of crisp pastry, rich cheesecake, luscious chocolate and bright, fresh cherries. Why do I call it “Tart Michel”? If you’re an artist you may paint a portrait of the one you love. If …

Chocolate Buttermilk Pie! This old-fashioned treat is made with tangy buttermilk, eggs, cocoa and chocolate. The custard is baked in a flakey crust. This easy recipe comes together in minutes. If you find yourself with some extra buttermilk after making Scones or Biscuits, you can make this pie with the addition of some pantry staples. …

This Chocolate Strawberry Tart features a dark chocolate cookie crust filled with chocolate pastry cream and it’s topped with fresh strawberries. If you love chocolate covered strawberries (and who doesn’t) you’ll love this dessert. When strawberries are in season you’ve got to eat as many as you can, in as many ways as you can. …

Chocolate Shortcrust Pastry (also known as short dough or pâte sucrée) is a slightly sweet cookie-like dough that is perfect for making fruit tarts, cream pies and cut-out cookies. It’s dead-simple to make and freezes very well. How can I use Chocolate Pastry Dough? Pâte Sucrée or Short dough bakes up with a nice crisp …

Is there anything prettier than a slice of Lemon Meringue Pie? A flaky pie crust filled with zesty filling and topped with billowy, toasty meringue is a thing of beauty. There’s a reason this is a classic recipe. Some recipes simply never go out of style. Lemon Meringue Pie is one of those perennially popular …

Chocolate Mousse Pie! A crunchy Oreo cookie-crust is filled with light and luscious dark chocolate mousse. The pie is topped with a mountain of vanilla scented whipped cream and homemade chocolate curls. Because we can’t have too many pies in the world, and because we can’t have too many chocolate desserts, I give you Chocolate …

They say “less is more” and this elegant Pear Custard Tart is a perfect example of that sentiment. Pears have an understated flavor which are perfectly enhanced by vanilla bean custard and a crackly caramelized sugar glaze. Tips for making a perfect Pear Custard Tart: Use a fluted tart pan with a removeable bottom for …

Cranberry Crumb Pie celebrates the gloriously tangy flavor of the indigenous American berry. The pure cranberry filling is perfectly complimented by a sweet and cinnamony brown sugar crumb topping. Ever wonder why we rarely see recipes for all cranberry pie? Apple-Cranberry, sure. Raspberry-Cranberry, sometimes. I adore the assertively tart flavor of cranberries and wanted to …