[1] A raspberry tart baked in a rectangular pan. (photo #1 and #2 and Recipe #1 © Betty Crocker).

[2] It’s easy to make the almond cookie crust by adding chopped almonds to the mix.

[3] Be sure to buy extra for nibbling (photo © Good Eggs).

It’s really easy to make a basic fruit tart with just a pastry shell, the fruit, and currant jelly for glazing.

More complex recipes have a filling of cheese, custard, or pastry cream. This recipe from Betty Crocker uses cream cheese—and doesn’t require a special tart pan.

It takes just 20 minutes to prepare. It takes a shortcut, using a cookie mix for the crust; but you can make a classic, buttery pâte brisée (short pastry) just as easily with the recipe below.

> The difference between pies and tarts.

> The different types of pies and tarts.

> Recipe: Raspberry Cream Pie or Tart.

> Recipe: Fruit Tart with Lemon Mascarpone Filling.
 
 
RECIPE #1: EASY RASPBERRY TART

Ingredients For The Crust

 
Ingredients For Topping and Glaze

 
Preparation
 
1. HEAT oven to 350°F. Spray a 15 x 10 x 1-inch pan with cooking spray.

2. CUT butter into cookie mix in a large bowl, using a pastry dough blender or fork. until crumbly; stir in almonds. Press dough in the bottom of the pan and 1/2 inch up the sides.

3. BAKE 20 to 25 minutes or until the edges are light golden brown. Cool completely, about 1 hour. Meanwhile…

4. BEAT cream cheese and sugar in a small bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed, until well blended and smooth. Spread evenly over the cooled cookie crust. Top with raspberries.

5. COMBINE jelly and honey in a small microwavable bowl. Microwave uncovered on high for 20 to 30 seconds or until thin enough to glaze. Brush glaze over berries.

6. REFRIGERATE 2 hours. Cut into 6 rows by 4 rows. Cover and refrigerate any remaining tarts. Makes 24 servings.
 

Pâte brisée (pot bree-ZAY), or short crust/shortcrust,* is a buttery tart crust with a crumbly texture. It is used for sweet and savory pies, tarts, and quiches. It can be made several days in advance and kept in the fridge, or frozen for a month.

Ingredients

Preparation

1. PULSE the flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor until combined. Add the butter and pulse for 15 seconds, until the ingredients resemble coarse meal.

2. ADD 1/4 cup ice water through the feed tube in a slow stream, until the dough just holds together when pinched (add remaining water as needed). Do not process for more than 30 seconds.

3. PLACE the dough on a work surface and gather it into a ball; divide the ball into two equal pieces, flatten it into a disk, and tightly wrap it in plastic. Refrigerate for 30-60 minutes.

4. PRESS into the tart pan, refrigerate or freeze for later use. Defrost in the fridge for several hours or overnight.

5. BAKE. Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the edges are light golden brown. Cool completely, about 1 hour before adding fruit.

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*Brisée actually is a participle of the French verb briser, which means to break, shatter or smash. We don’t know the origin, but inspired by the store of ganache, we like to think cookware was broken by whoever created the recipe.
 
 

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[2] Use chocolate chips, or upgrade to higher-level chocolate (photo © Bella Baker).

Chili and chocolate are an ancient combination. The Mayas and Aztecs, who did not have solid chocolate but consumed cacao as a beverage, flavored it with chiles. (See the history of chocolate.)

Today, chocolatiers combine the two flavors in delicious “Mexican chocolate bars,” also called spicy chocolate bars and chili chocolate bars.

In between chocolate beverages and chocolate bars, there’s fondue, just waiting to be spiced with chiles as a Cinco de Mayo treat. Try this recipe from Fairytale Brownies, which makes 6 servings:
 
 
RECIPE: CHILI CHOCOLATE FONDUE

Ingredients

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One of the founders of Stonyfield yogurt went on to found the American Halal Company. The company has nationally launched Saffon Road, its flagship brand.

The stylish and tasty brand is the first halal-certified product line to be sold nationally in all Whole Foods stores (it’s also in 6,000 other retail stores across the U.S.).

Now people hankering for anything from Lamb Saag to Pad Thai can have it after only four minutes in the microwave.

The foods are all-natural, antibiotic-free, locally sourced and Certified Humane. They are not heavily spiced, so have a broad appeal.

Most products are Certified Gluten-Free; select products are vegan/vegetarian and Non-GMO.

Two of the frozen entrees, ready in four minutes. Photo courtesy Saffron Road.

A BOUNTIFUL BUFFET

Everything is ready in minutes, with the exception of the crunchy chickpea snacks, which are ready as soon as you tear off the top of the bag:

Saffron comprises the dried stigmas, called threads, of the saffron crocus, Crocus sativus. The reddish-colored stigmas are used in global cuisines from Spain to India, as a seasoning and coloring agent. The stigmas contain the carotenoid dye crocin, which imparts a rich golden-yellow hue to dishes (and in earlier times, textiles).

Saffron is the world’s most costly spice by weight; each flower produces only three stigmas, so many are needed to produce just one gram of the spice. Fortunately, you need very little to flavor a dish.

Saffron is native to Greece, and was first cultivated on the Greek island of Crete, as early as the Bronze Age (500 B.C.E. to 1200 B.C.E.). It was slowly propagated throughout much of Eurasia, North Africa, North America and Oceania. The first written record dates to a 7th-century B.C.E. Assyrian botanical treatise.

Today Iran grows 90% of the world’s saffron, although Afghanistan, Greece Italy, Iran, Kashmir (India), Morocco and Spain are also producers. Saffron from different regions has different potencies; for example, Kashmiri saffron is very strong and you may need to use less than what is called for in your recipe.

The spice is used in dishes such as arroz con pollo and paella (Spain); bouillabaisse (France) an other Mediterranean seafood soups; chelow kabab (Iran), chicken biryanil, kashmiri lamb and saffron rice (India); lamb tagine (Morocco) and saffron bread (Sweden).

As with many herbs and spices, it’s hard to describe the flavor (what do garlic and paprika taste like?). However, it is glorious with a heady perfume, imparting a tastes of honey, hay and earthiness.

Too much saffron is not a good thing: It can make a dish bitter.