Fig Tart With Cream Cheese Filling Food

FIG TART WITH CREAM CHEESE FILLING

Steps:

• Cream together butter and granulated sugar in bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, about 2 minutes. Add yolks, and mix just to combine. Whisk together dry ingredients, and add to yolk mixture; mix just until it comes together loosely. Transfer the dough to plastic wrap, press together, and transfer to the refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes, until firm.
• Prepare a 4 1/2-by-14-inch rectangular fluted tart tin with cooking spray. Roll out dough between two pieces of plastic wrap to about 1/8-inch thickness. Discard the top plastic wrap, and gently invert dough over the prepared tart tin. Discard the remaining piece of plastic wrap. Press dough into tin, and trim so dough is flush with edges. Repair tears or cracks by pressing together dough with your fingers. Place in the refrigerator to chill for about 30 minutes.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Prick crust all over with a fork, and bake on the middle rack of oven until crust begins to color, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven, and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. When cool, remove from the pan. Place on a serving platter or board.
• Place cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer, and beat until smooth. Add creme fraiche and confectioners' sugar, and beat until mixture is smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Transfer to the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes. Spread filling into cooled crust, and arrange figs on top, pressing them in slightly.
• To make glaze, combine the jam and wine in a small saucepan. Set over medium-high heat, and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat, and simmer until mixture is thick and syrupy, about 2 minutes. Cool slightly, and brush warm glaze over figs with a pastry brush. Chill the tart in the refrigerator if not serving right away. Serve within several hours.

FIG, CREAM CHEESE AND MINT TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
• Roll out the pastry on a floured counter to the thickness of a 1-cent piece and use it to carefully line the pan. Homemade pastry is short and so will be quite crumbly. Don't be alarmed by this, you can patch it together in the pan. Take a small ball of the pastry (the size of a nickel) and use it to gently ease the dough down into the pan. Press the handle of a wooden spoon against the pastry all round the edges to coax it into the fluted grooves. Trim off the excess around the top and run a thin knife around between the pastry and the edge of the pan to loosen. Put in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes, or until firm.
• Remove the tart from the refrigerator. Take a piece of parchment paper slightly larger than the pan and scrunch it up, then unscrunch it and line the pan with it. Fill it with pie weights or dried beans and "blind bake" in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the pastry feels sandy to the touch. Remove the paper and bake for an additional 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.
• For the filling, put the cream in a bowl and whip until beginning to thicken, then fold it into the cream cheese and mix with the honey and Marsala, if using. Put the filling in the tart case, then arrange the figs on top and scatter over the nuts and mint. Serve with a sweet wine such as Asti.
• Figs and mint are delicious, so sprinkling some torn mint leaves over the tart works really well. This tart is best eaten on the day it is made.