The heat wave has broken (for now). We were slammed with a thunderstorm yesterday and temperatures have dropped to the low-mid 80s. Life is suddenly so comfortable! I might even turn off my air conditioner and turn on my oven this weekend!
I had been avoiding any heat-intensive recipes for the past few weeks. I made a lot of popsicles. (Incidentally, my cat LOVES popsicles. He doesn’t like most human food, fortunately, but popsicles are the exception!) But, I did prepare a tart that involves a minimal amount of oven time. It was really delicious, and can be modified according to your taste. The original recipe called for peaches, but because I have already posted a few peach-centric recipes and I am extremely frustrated with my local supermarket selling mealy peaches, I opted for nectarines. I think that you could use any berry as well.
The best thing about this recipe is that the crust is more of a cheesecake type cookie crust rather than a dough crust. To me it is way too difficult to make a pie crust when the apartment is approaching 90 degrees!
Nectarine & Cream Tart with Roasted Almond Crust
adapted from: Food & Wine Magazine
2 c vanilla wafer cookies (Nilla Wafers)
½ c roasted almonds
6 T sugar, divided
4 T unsalted butter, melted
8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
¼ c sour cream
1 large egg
2 nectarines (or whatever you prefer instead)
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a food processor, combine Nilla Wafers, almonds, and 2 T of sugar. Process until fine. Add melted butter and process until evenly moistened. Press crumbs into the bottom and about 1 inch up the sides of a tart pan (you can use a pie pan or springform pan as well).
- Bake for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a mixer blend cream cheese, sour cream, egg and 2 T sugar. Combine until smooth, and then pour mixture into crust. Bake for 15 minutes.
- Let tart cool slightly and then transfer to refrigerator to cool completely.
- In a bowl, toss nectarines (unpeeled) with the remaining 2 T sugar. Arrange as you wish over the cream layer. Cut into wedges and serve.
Serves: 8
Calories: 300