effortless entertainment: raspberry tart

For recipes that are deceivingly easy, I turn to Ina Garten. Her recipes are simple, delicious, and major crowd-pleasers. Every time I open The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook, I turn straight to a giant picture of a raspberry tart as the pages have grown accustomed to this page constantly being open and worked over. There are remnants of tart crust and raspberry jam sticking to the white page. This tart serves for many occasions; it looks much more impressive than it actually is and tastes like summer no matter what the season. 

Raspberry Tart

The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook by Ina Garten

10-12 servings

Ingredients:

Tart Shell:

3/4 cup unsalted butter at room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

pinch of salt

Filling:

1 cup good raspberry preserves

1 1/2 pints fresh raspberries (3 packages)

Time to Whisk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix the butter and sugar together until they are just combined. Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add them to the butter-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a surface dusted with flour and shape into a flat disk. Press the dough into a 10-inch-round or 9-inch-square false-bottom tart pan, making sure that the finished edge in flat. *I just shape the dough into the tart pan.* Chill until firm.

Butter one side of a square of aluminum foil to fit inside the tart and place it, buttered side down, on the pastry. Fill with beans or rice. *Use a pastry weight if you have one.* Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and beans, prick the tart all over with tines of a fork, and bake again for 20 to 25 minutes more, or until lightly browned. Allow to cool to room temperature.

Spread the tart with raspberry preserves and place the raspberries, stem end down, in concentric circles. If you are making a square tart, place the raspberries in rows. Serve immediately.