The Altitude Adjustment Section
And now for our 4th of July Blue recipe which could be nothing but blueberries. This is a great fresh tart recipe form Susan Purdy’s book The Perfect Pie, and it's fast.
Ingredients for crust
8 ounces room temp cream cheese
1 cup (2 sticks) room temp unsalted butter
2 cups AP flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
Procedure for crust
In your electric mixer, combine the cream cheese and butter (break it into pieces before processing). Mix till blended. Sift the flour and salt directly over the bowl. Now mix just till combined. If dough is too sticky, add a bit more flour. Now take dough and form into a ball, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Roll out dough into pan, and chill until firm. Then weight shell and bake at 400 for about 15 minutes. Remove weight and bake for 10-14 minutes more at 350. Judge by color — you want the shell fully cooked and golden brown. Let cool before filling.
Ingredients for tart
1 pre-baked 10-11 inch tart shell
2 tablespoons cornstarch
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 cup blueberry preserves
3 cups fresh blueberries
Procedure for tart
In a medium saucepan, combine cornstarch and lemon juice and stir till completely dissolved, then stir in the preserves, mixing well to combine, and bring the mixture to a full rolling boil until the juice is thickened and the mixture is no longer cloudy. Stir in 1/2 cup of blueberries and with a fork smash the berries on the sides of the pan. Spread this mixture on the bottom and sides of your tart shell. Now top with the rest of your fresh berries. Just before serving, sprinkle the top with powdered sugar, or you can melt some apricot jelly (1/2 cup) with a splash of rum and a little water and drizzle that over the top. Don’t forget the ice cream!
