Note: I was sent some quail eggs from Spring Creek Quail Farms in order to write this post. Opinions are mine alone.
I love a recipe that looks fancy, but really takes minimal effort, like this recipe for Prosciutto Asparagus and Quail Egg Tarts, adapted slightly from a Spring Creek Quail Farms recipe, created by Chef Andrea Monzon. When Spring Creek Quail Farms contacted me with a bunch of quail egg recipes, I jumped at the opportunity!
Spring Creek Quail Farms, a small, family-owned, zero-waste farm in Saint Anns, Ontario, offers a small but powerful, nutritious alternative in the Egg aisle: quail eggs. Quail eggs have long captivated food enthusiasts with their exquisite taste, enticed health-conscious consumers with their remarkable nutritional benefits and have been viewed as a delicacy by many communities. Spring Creek Quail Farms eggs can be found in multiple stores across the US and Canada.
Quail eggs are an easy and effective way to elevate really any recipe where you’d use eggs. The quail eggs, buttery puff pastry, tangy goat cheese, salty prosciutto, and fresh asparagus result in an absolutely delicious dish that can be served either as an appetizer or as a smaller main course.
I love fall treats, but I can’t really justify making a whole apple pie for just my boyfriend and I; we would be eating it for days! So I love that this month’s Cooking Light had a recipe for mini spiced apple two bite tarts that I can also share with friends. I adapted the recipe slightly, adding some more fall spices. I also didn’t have any 1% milk on hand so I substituted heavy cream. I also topped mine with mascarpone instead of crème fraîche because I thought it would taste great with these tarts.
These are really easy to make; the most difficult part (a.k.a. most time consuming) is dicing the apples. But you definitely want to cut them nice and small so that they fit in the tarts. You also need a mini cupcake tin for this, but you can adapt it to make normal cupcake sized ones if you wanted, just increase the baking time.
Ingredients:
CRUST
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
4.5 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 cup)
1/3 cup very finely chopped toasted pecans
Baking spray with flour
FILLING
2 cups finely diced peeled Granny Smith apple (~4 apples)
This month, Walkers Shortbread sent us a little surprise with our monthly shipment for the Walkers Ambassador Program: Fig and Golden Plum Mirabelle preserves from Bonne Maman! I was so excited to use them in a recipe and immediately wanted to make mini preserves tarts. I incorporated some of the shortbread into the crust for a boost of flavor. (I used Martha Stewart’s recipe as a base and made some changes)
These mini preserves tarts would be great to set out as little bites for guests while waiting for Thanksgiving dinner to be prepared, or would be a wonderful addition to the dessert table! You could make it with any type of preserves or jams you wanted: Bonne Maman has almost 20 different options that would all make for a yummy dessert.
In addition to these yummy tarts, I have two other recipes that would be great Thanksgiving desserts that use Walkers Shortbread:
Walkers Shortbread is offering I Can Cook That readers an exclusive promotion, running from Monday, October 28 through Monday, November 4: 20% off your entire purchase at www.walkersus.com (excluding sales items) with the code ICCTFALL. So stock up for all your Thanksgiving needs!
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 tablespoons Bonne Maman preserves (I used 1 tablespoon fig and 1 tablespoon golden plum)
1 tablespoon heavy cream
To make the mini preserves tarts, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Using a food processor, blend the shortbreads until they resemble a fine crumb.
Add the flour, sugar, salt and cinnamon and process for 10 seconds.
Add butter and process until mixture resembles coarse meal, 15 to 20 seconds.
Combine 1 egg yolk with 3 tablespoons ice water and 1 teaspoon almond extract.
Add to flour mixture and process until the dough comes together, about 10 seconds. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
Lightly dust a work surface with flour; roll out dough to just thinner than 1/4 inch (6 mm). Using a round cookie cutter, cut out shapes and press into a mini cupcake tin. (I used a 2 1/2″ round biscuit cutter)
Use a fork to press down the dough around the edges of each mini cupcake tin. Fill each with 1 teaspoon preserves.
Lightly brush exposed dough with heavy cream. Bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer tarts from tins to a wire rack to cool. Let cool completely before serving.
These are perfect little bites! The crust is light and fluffy and help highlight the delicious sweetness of the preserves.
You get a hint of the almond extract which is a great complement to fig and plum. If you don’t have almond extract you can sub in some vanilla extract.
Mini Preserves Tarts
Recipe Type: Dessert, Make Ahead
Author: I Can Cook That
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 12
Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup Walkers Shortbread Rounds crumbs (~7 cookies)
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 tablespoons Bonne Maman preserves (I used 1 tablespoon fig and 1 tablespoon golden plum)
1 tablespoon heavy cream
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Using a food processor, blend the shortbreads until they resemble a fine crumb.
Add the flour, sugar, salt and cinnamon and process for 10 seconds.
Add butter and process until mixture resembles coarse meal, 15 to 20 seconds.
Combine 1 egg yolk with 3 tablespoons ice water and 1 teaspoon almond extract.
Add to flour mixture and process until the dough comes together, about 10 seconds. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
Lightly dust a work surface with flour; roll out dough to just thinner than 1/4 inch (6 mm). Using a round cookie cutter, cut out shapes and press into a mini cupcake tin. (I used a 2 1/2″ round biscuit cutter)
Use a fork to press down the dough around the edges of each mini cupcake tin. Fill each with 1 teaspoon preserves.
Lightly brush exposed dough with heavy cream. Bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer tarts from tins to a wire rack to cool. Let cool completely before serving.
