With all the lovely fruit that is available during the brief summer months, fruit tarts are one of my favorite treats! Now, to be totally honest, I am not a baker. I love cooking but baking is more technical - you have to measure and be precise and stuff. This is not how I cook. I make things that taste great by adding a bit of this, a bit of that, and magically it all shows up. So with this in mind, I make simple fruit tarts but trust me - they are fabulous and no one will know how simple they are if you don't tell them. :)

Things you will need:
- Fruit of your choice- washed and dried (I use my fresh grown raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries and then supplement with store bought things like mandarin oranges and kiwis or fresh produce from the farmer's market like the cherries, nectarines, and peaches)
- one box of instant, no cook, vanilla pudding mix
- 1 small jar of apricot spreadable fruit/preserves
- 1 small can of sweetened condensed milk 
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 Tablespoons orange liquor
- 1 pint of heavy whipping cream (can use whole milk but not as good)
- 2 cups Vanilla/French vanilla yogurt- not Greek yogurt though
- 1 small jar of lemon curd (in the jam aisle, right near apricot preserves. Some stores may have it with the "British food" section. This is one of the things that I think makes my pastry crème amazing, so I would spend some time finding it or you can make it ahead of time and then use left 
                                                    overs on scones/muffins. Do not substitute with "lemon pie filling")
                                                    - granulated sugar, not the super fine stuff! Rock sugar, if you can find it
                                                    - pre-made pie crusts - not deep dish

Pie Crust:
1) Easy trick to make your pie crust better: After the crust defrosts and while you are waiting for the oven to heat up, coat the crust with the rock sugar. [Alternative to make tartlets: Take the second crust in the set and spread out and cut into little pie shapes and put in muffin tins with sugar on them.]
1) Poke holes in bottom of crust and cook in 400 degree oven for 18 minutes or so.
2) Put on counter to cool



Apricot Glaze:
1) Add 1 cup of the apricot preserves/spreadable fruit into a large, microwave safe glass.
2) Add lemon juice and orange liquor to the preserves and mix until well blended.
3) Heat in microwave for 2 minutes (cooks off alcohol).
4) carefully remove glass and mix well. Let cool a bit on counter.

How to Make the Pastry Crème:
This is my cheater recipe. I have had given/shared it with pastry chefs and they have been "wowed" by it. Seriously.
1) Empty contents of the pudding mix into a large mixing bowl.
2) In a 3 Cup measuring glass measuring glass, add 1 and 3/4 Cups of the vanilla yogurt, 1/3 Cup of the lemon curd, 2 Tablespoons of the sweetened condensed milk. Fill with the heavy whipping until you hit the 3 Cup mark.
3) Mix all the ingredients well in the measuring glass until they are smooth.
4) Pour the mixture into the bowl with the pudding powder mix and whisk until smooth.
5) Put in fridge to thicken and stay cold until ready to fill tarts.

 Tart Assembly:
Well, this is the easy part and you get to use your imagination.

1) Put a thin layer of the pastry crème into the crust. Some people like thicker layers, I subscribe to no more than 1/2 an inch of crème to balance with the fresh fruit and the apricot glaze.


2) depending on how sweet you fruit is, you have two choices for the glaze:
          a) spread a thin layer over the crème for an added layer of sweetness in every bite. This leaves the fruit looking pristine, or
          b) Add the glaze over the top of the fruit to make them shiny and add sweetness to the fruit. I prefer this method with less sweet fruit like kiwis, mandarins, etc.
3) Put the tarts in the fridge for a few hours to chill but they are ready to serve!

I love broccoli but I know many hate it. I am a firm believer in "you have to find the right way to serve it" for most foods. I grow my own broccoli and I buy it fresh whenever I can. I have two go-to recipes for broccoli. The first one, Blasted Broccoli, is my own take on a recipe from a very popular restaurant in Bellevue, WA called Black Bottle. They made it first but I think mine is better! :)

The second recipe is based on another restaurant's dish called Soup Plantation/Sweet Tomatoes. I will post it separately but it is a healthy twist on coleslaw made with broccoli instead of cabbage! It is sweet, crunchy, and very easy to make. It is also a super sneaky way to slip in good fresh veggies with the kiddos.

Blasted Broccoli is super easy to make and I have converted several die-hard "I hate broccoli" people with this recipe.

What you will need:
- 2 large heads of broccoli (you can use frozen in a pinch but I do not recommend it - it turns out soggy and less crispy)- cut into bite size portions
- Extra virgin olive oil - about 1/4 Cup
- Cajun Spice blend (You can instead use any of your favorite spice blends with or without salt. My mother likes the classic Salad Supreme for a mild/no heat version.)
- Large cookie sheet with a piece of aluminum foil covering it
- salt - kosher salt is best

Directions: Safety Tip: Also have a box of baking soda around in case of a grease fire. If you spill oil or it catches fire, never ever, ever use water on a grease fire.
1. Pre-heat oven to 500 degrees (or as hot as it will go).
2. Use a large cookie sheet and cover in aluminum foil to prevent oil staining and to make easy clean-up.
3. Toss florets in enough oil to get them shiny but not so much that it pools on the pan. Pour off any excess if it puddles.
4. Spread florets out in a single layer and dust with seasoning. Make sure you evenly coat all of the florets.
5. Put in middle rack of oven and bake for 15-18 minutes. they are done when the edges are slightly crispy and a little browned and tender.
6. Remove from oven and sprinkle with kosher salt. Enjoy!

This is one of my favorite quick and easy meals. It is a very low-fat, high protein, can be gluten free (if no bread or gluten free pita), vegetarian (or vegan if no parmesan) yummy sandwich. It is great for all diets, and super easy to make. If you make it let me know how it turned out!

Total time: 15 minutes (10 minutes to cook, 5 to put together)

Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1.5 Tablespoons chopped garlic
4-5 Tablespoons fresh basil - cut into ribbons (chiffonade)
1 teaspoon Red pepper flakes (more or less depending on how hot you like; this is the "hot" amount b/c I like it spicy!)
4 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 Tablespoon Balsamic vinegar
3 Tablespoons Sun Dried Tomatoes in oil or dry - thin slices (julienned)
1 can of Cannellini or Northern White Beans, water drained
1 Tablespoon Reduced-fat Parmesan Cheese Grated (optional)
pinch of kosher salt and few grinds of fresh black pepper
Bag of baby spinach
1 tub of favorite pre-made hummus (optional)
4 - pita pockets cut in half - spray out side of pocket with Pam, then toast in oven or toaster - no higher than a 3-4 on a toaster

Directions:

Add oil to small sauté pan. Heat to medium high. When hot, add garlic, stir, wait 30 seconds, add basil, stir gently for 30 seconds, add pepper flakes, wait 15 seconds, then add lemon juice. Bring back to boil and boil for 30 seconds.  Add vinegar, wait about a 1 minute. Add sun dried tomatoes and then beans. Stir well. When boiling sprinkle salt and pepper and cheese on mixture. Turn off heat.  Stuff a small handful of fresh spinach into toasted, warmed pita. Spoon in the bean mixture as full as you would like it. Enjoy!

Variations:
1) If you have or are using hummus, spread hummus inside of the toasted pita pocket like you would any dressing.
2) This works equally well without the bread as a warm salad. Toss bean mixture with spinach and add a little extra of the dressing from the bottom of the pan.  
3) You can also serve this on a toasted baguette with spinach on it as a bruschetta style appetizer.