Blackberry Tartlets For Michaelmas

According to an old legend, when St. Michael cast Lucifer out of heaven, the Devil fell on a blackberry bush and cursed and spat on the blackberries thereby rendering them sour after September 29.  Consequently, people would eat blackberries on Michaelmas but not after. Catholic Cuisine has offered a variety of blackberry inspired ideas over the years for St. Michael's day. This is a simple to make, bite-size appetizer or snack that would add the blackberry theme to a Archangel/St. Michael feast day.

Blackberry Tartlets

Ingredients

1 sheet pastry puff, thawed 

1 (8 ounce) package of brie, rind removed

blackberry jam (or puree)

blackberries

Directions

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• Thaw pastry puff as per directions.
• Cut pastry puff sheet into 20 equal squares (I rolled out the sheet with a rolling pin so that it would be slightly larger before cutting)
• Spray a mini muffin tin with cooking spray. Press each square of the pastry dough into the bottom of each muffin tin. Be sure to press the crust all the way up the sides.
• Place a small chunk of brie in each tin.
• Bake for 10 minutes.
• If puffs have risen too much push down gently with spoon to form indent. 
• Let the pastries cool for a few minutes, then remove from the pan and let cool completely. Add a small spoonful of blackberry jam (or puree) and top with a fresh blackberry.

St. Michael and all the Archangels, Pray for us!

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A is for St Anne and for Apple Tart

France, the 'Eldest Daughter of the Church' has always had a special connection to St Anne, since it's earliest days.  If you have ever watched the 4 part documentary Eldest Daughter of the Church (which I high recommend) you will see it begins with St Anne ~ her venerable body being carefully transported from the persecution in the Holy Land, in a boat with Sts Lazarus, Mary Magdalen, Martha and other notable New Testament people.  They have been cast out by their persecutors into a boat with no oars and by the grace of God, arrival safely to the shores of France.  This country was to be the final resting place for St Anne and devotion has spread out from there to all parts of the world, notably Canada, where her greatest shrine stands, in La Côte-de-Beaupré.

Since St Anne's feast day falls in height of summer in the Northern Hemisphere, where fruit is abundant and enjoyed, it comes as no surprise that fruit tarts are a tradition for her feast.  There would be great spiritual symbolism as well, St Anne is the 'fruitful, flowering vine of Jesse' and Mary is the Immaculate  'fruit of her womb'.  Her tomb in Apt, France had been engraved with this symbolism as Frances Parkinson Keyes points out in her book, "St Anne, Grandmother of Our Saviour":

"This design is still visible, in exacly the same form wherein it was graven so many centuries ago. It consists of the flowering branch of a tree, interlaced with a vine bearing both foliage and grapes. To look at it is an experience so moving that, months after gazing at it, this chronicler finds it impossible even to write of it without profound emotion. For it reveals, unmistakably, that when the stone slab was carved, even as now, men and women were reverently reciting the litany which begins:

"St Anne, Grandmother of our Saviour, pray for us." And continues: "St Anne, Root of Jesse, St Anne, Fruitful Vine....pray for us."

St Anne's tomb engraving.

So I have made for my family today a fruit tart ~ an apple tart.  Apple is a very good choice of fruit for St Anne because Eve in the Garden of Eden, corrupted the apple, whereas Mary is the 'new Eve' who restores what is corrupted and Mary is the fruit of St Anne's womb..I think of the typology of the two Eves and think ~ apple.  

I wanted something that was delicious and healthy.   So I found a lovely recipe that is gluten-free with minimal sugar, using hazelnut meal for the crust/base and agave nectar and apple cider with the apple filling.  My husband said, 'well I really enjoyed that', so I think it is a good recipe, just the perfect amount of sweetness and worth trying.  The recipe was adapted by Tamara Duker Freuman at her website here.

APPLE HAZELNUT TART

Flourless Hazelnut Tart Crust

1.5 cup Hazelnut Meal

6 Tbsp of powdered sugar (I used rapadura)

2 Tbsp of butter at room temp 

1 1/2 Tbsp of cream

I just kneaded the ingredients together, popped the bowl in the fridge for 15mins, then pressed the dough into 9" tart dish.  I pre-baked the pie crust in the oven at 375 degrees (for Australia, that would be 190 degrees), for about 5mins or so and then removed it from the oven, ready to fill with the apple filling

Apple Filling

2 lbs (1 kg) Granny Smith apples, cored, peeled and sliced into 1/2" wedges

1/4 cup agave nectar

3/4 cup apple cider

I placed the apple slices into a large frypan, drizzled the agave nectar over the apples and poured in the apple cider.    I popped the lid on the frypan and let the apples cook for about 10-15mins (the time depends on whether you want the shape of the slices kept or you are happy to to let the apple go to mush ~ I did the later).  I then removed the lid and let all the liquid evaporate and then spooned the filling into the tart dish.

I then put the tart into the oven at the same temperature as before and cooked for 25-30mins.  Once out of the oven, I let it cool so that it was mildly warm and served with whipped cream.  I cut the pie to serve 8.

Happy St Anne's Day!

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Epiphany Tart

Inspired by our latest family read aloud, we looked into English Epiphany traditions and found that an Epiphany Tart (which we would consider just a simple jam tart) was considered a delicacy in the Victorian age. When done well, it is supposed to have at least 13 different flavors of jam and look like a stained glass window. Ours only had 6 flavors and while not lovely enough to hang in a Cathedral, it still looks good enough to eat!

Epiphany Tart

1 1/2 C. flour

1/2 C. powdered sugar

1/4 tsp. salt

9 Tbl. cold stick butter, cut into pieces

1 egg yolk

an assortment of jams

In a food processor, pulse dry ingredients to combine. Add butter and pulse until coarsely cut. Break up the yolk and add in parts, pulsing for 10 seconds after each addition. When the dough clumps, turn dough out onto a work surface. Knead lightly to mix in any unincorporated ingredients. Press into bottom and partially up the sides of a buttered tart pan. Shape the wise men's star with extra dough by pinching and pressing together. Place in freezer for 30 minutes. (I doubled the recipe and had some left over.)

Prior to baking

Preheat oven to 375. Bake tart for 25 minutes. Remove and fill sections with jam. Bake another 10 minutes until jam is set and tart is lightly browned. Cool on rack until ready to serve.

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