Caramel Nut Tart

Ingredients:

    All-purpose flour, for dusting
    Pate Sucree
    1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks)
    1 cup packed light-brown sugar
    1/4 cup granulated sugar
    3/4 cup honey
    1/4 cup heavy cream
    1 pound assorted mixed nuts, such as hazelnuts, pistachios, almonds, pecans, or cashews
    1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract







Directions:

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Have ready two 9-inch tart pans with removable bottoms. Cut out two 12-inch parchment circles, and set aside. Lightly flour a clean work surface. Roll out one disk of pate sucree to a 12-inch circle with a 1/4-inch thickness. Roll dough onto rolling pin, and unroll over one of the tart pans. Press pastry into place, being careful not to stretch dough; use a paring knife to trim any overhanging dough. Repeat with remaining disk pate sucree and tart pan. Chill both pans for 30 minutes.
2. Line pastry with parchment circles, and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until pastry begins to take on color, about 25 minutes. Remove the parchment and weights; continue baking or until light golden brown all over, about 10 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Wrap in plastic; set aside until ready to use.
3. Reduce oven to 325 degrees. Place butter, both sugars, honey, and heavy cream in a large saucepan set over high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil 5 minutes. Stir in nuts and vanilla; remove pan from heat. Pour filling into reserved tart shells.
4. Bake tarts on the center rack until the filling bubbles, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer tarts to a wire rack to cool. Store in an airtight container up to 2 days.

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Strawberry Oatmeal Muffins

Ingredients:

    1 1/4 cups old fashioned oats
    1 cup plain yogurt
    1/2 pound strawberries
    2 teaspoons granulated white sugar
    1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
    2 eggs
    1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
    1/2 cup brown sugar (packed)
    1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    1 cup all purpose flour
    1 Tbsp baking powder
    1/2 teaspoon baking soda
    1/4 teaspoon salt
    1/4 teaspoon finely ground black pepper
    1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

1. Mix the oats and plain yogurt together in a large bowl.
2. Rinse and core the strawberries. Roughly chop the strawberries (I cut them in quarters lengthwise and then make one or two crosswise cuts). You should have about 1 1/2 cups of chopped strawberries. Place in a small bowl. Sprinkle with white sugar and balsamic vinegar. Gently stir to coat the strawberries with the sugar and vinegar.
3. Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat oven to 400°F. Prepare a 12-well muffin tin by coating with butter or lining with paper muffin cups.
4. Whisk together in a medium bowl the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, finely ground black pepper, and cinnamon.
5. Add the eggs, melted butter, brown sugar, and vanilla extract to the oatmeal and yogurt mixture. Stir until just incorporated.
6. Use a wooden spoon to gently stir the flour mixture into the oatmeal. Stir until just incorporated and the flour is moistened. Do not over-mix! Or your muffins will end up rubbery. The batter should be rather lumpy, not smooth.
7. Gently fold in the strawberries, including any of the sugary vinegary liquid the strawberries have been sitting in.
8. Spoon the batter evenly into the muffin tin wells or cups. Bake until the tops are browned and the muffin bounces back when you gently press on the top with your finger tips, about 20 minutes. A bamboo or metal skewer inserted into the center should come out clean. Let cool for a couple minutes in the muffin tin before removing to serve.

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