Ginger Pumpkin Tart

A fun twist on an autumn classic! This ginger pumpkin tart is incredibly flavourful with just the right amount of spice! The tart has a deliciously smooth pumpkin filling and a chewy ginger cookie crust. Perfect for any fall gathering!

It is finally starting to look and feel like fall here! The leaves are changing colours and there a definite crisp chill to the air. I am loving every minute of it! Fall is my favourite season. I love the colours, the cozy knits and the delicious flavours. One of the best things about fall? All things pumpkin of course!

I didn’t want to make your traditional pumpkin pie this year. I wanted to do something a little bit different. I recently purchase a couple of tart pans and I couldn’t wait to use them! I decided step outside the traditionally round pumpkin pie and make a pumpkin tart instead. Since I was already going with a non-traditional shape I figured I may as well change up the crust too. This ginger cookie crust is delicious! Its slightly more chewy and less flaky in texture than your typical pie crust. It is also incredibly flavourful! The ginger flavour pairs exceptionally well with the pumpkin filling. The filling itself is pretty typical of a pumpkin pie filling. Its full of delicious warming spices and is silky smooth!

Ginger Pumpkin Tart

Yield: One 14 by 4.5 inch tart
Time: The pumpkin filing and ginger cookie crust need to chill for 4+ hours

Ingredients

Pumpkin Filling

1 c pumpkin puree

¾ c brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tbsp corn starch

½ tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

1 ½ tsp pumpkin pie spice

½ c heavy cream

Pie Crust

1 c flour

½ c brown sugar

1 ½ tsp ginger

½ c butter, cold and grated

2 tbsp molasses

1 egg, beaten

Directions

For the filling: In a medium bowl, whisk together pumpkin puree, brown sugar, and eggs until combined. Whisk in corn starch, salt, pepper, pumpkin pie spice. Finally, whisk in heavy cream until combined. Cover with plastic wrap and let chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours or up to overnight.

For the crust: In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar and ginger. Cut in grated butter until mixture resembles wet sand. Stir in molasses and egg, mixing until dough is formed. Pour dough onto lightly floured plastic wrap and form into a disk. Place wrapped dough in the fridge for a minimum of four hour or overnight.

Pre-heat oven to 400F. Remove dough from plastic wrap and using a rolling pin, roll dough out into long rectangle until dough is about 1/8 inch thick. Lay dough across tart pan. Press dough lightly into bottom and sides of tart pan. Cover pan with a piece of plastic wrap and place in freezer for 30 minutes. Using a fork gently prick sides and bottom of dough with a fork. Par-bake dough for 10 minutes.

Drop oven down to 375F. Pour pumpkin filling into par-baked crust. Bake until the centre is almost set, about 25-30 minutes. Allow tart to cool completely before serving.

Apple Pie Cheesecake

When apple pie meets cheesecake you get this decadent dessert. Why choose one when you can have both?

I warned you the apple recipes were coming. I know you shouldn't play favourites but you guys if you make one thing from this blog let it be this. Seriously I think it is one of the best things I have ever made. A pain to photograph - oh why can't everything I make be as photogenic as a cupcake? But seriously delicious. Everyone who was lucky enough to try this delicious masterpiece commented even days after the fact that it was the best cheesecake they've ever had. It is that good. I mean when you are combining two delicious desserts - apple pie and cheesecake - its hard not to come up with something delicious. 

This cheesecake is a bit of a labour of love. I love the look of a beautiful intricate lattice pie crust - but you can omit this if you are short of time or cannot be bothered. The cheesecake will still be as delicious.  In order to truly capture the essence of apple pie, I used pie dough as my cheesecake crust rather than a traditional graham cracker crumb. I used a homemade pie crust but feel free to use your favourite store bought brand as well.  To develop the apple pie flavour I cooked my apples slightly on the stove first before layering them with the cheesecake in the oven. Since the apples are being topped with the cheesecake mixture they won't cook the same way they do in a traditional apple pie. 

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Apple Pie Cheesecake 

Makes: One 8 inch round cheesecake

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Directions 

In a medium bowl toss together all of the ingredients for the apple filling, except the butter. In a medium sized sauce pan over medium heat, melt the butter and add the apple filling. Simmer until the apples have softened, about 5 minutes.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together cream cheese, greek yogurt and sugar until well combined. Mix in the flour and vanilla. Add the eggs one at a time, scrapping down the bowl after each addition. 

Preheat oven to 325F. Roll out your pie crust into a circle approximately 11 inches in diameter.  Press into the bottom of of a spring form pan with 1-2 inches of crust coming up onto the sides of the spring form pan. Spread half of your apple filling mixture on top of the crust. Pour the cream cheese cake filling on top. Bake for an hour to an hour and 10 minutes or until cheese cake is set.

Allow cheesecake to cool. Top with the remainder of your apple filling mixture and decorate with a lattice pie crust top if desired. 

To make the lattice crust - create crust design as desired and bake according to directions based on the crust recipe you've used or until golden brown. Place on top of cheese cake after baking.

Ingredients

For the Apple Filling: 

8 medium apples, peeled and sliced 

1/2 c sugar 

1/2 c brown sugar 

2 tsp cinnamon 

2 tbsp flour 

2 tbsp lemon juice 

1/4 c butter

For the cheese cake:

Single pie crust, double if you'd like to create decorations

2 1/2packages (625g) of cream cheese, softened

1/2 c greek yogurt 

1/2 c sugar 

1 tbsp flour 

1 tsp vanilla 

3 eggs, at room temperature

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Gluten Free Almond Peach Galette

Juicy peaches combined with a delicious gluten free almond crust make this almond peach galette the ideal summer dessert. Top with ice cream and enjoy outside after a BBQ for the perfect summer evening

Well I didn't mean to take almost an entire month off from blogging but somehow the time just got away from me. I went on vacation for a couple of weeks with my family and didn't do enough advanced planning to get blog posts out while I was away. But I have  been busy the last couple of weeks planning new content, recipe testing and editing photos/videos for you! I am excited about some of the new recipes and tutorials I have coming your way. Starting with this Gluten Free Almond and Peach Galette.  I've been into baking with fruit lately. Can you tell? 

I have always wanted to make a galette. When ever I browse through Pinterest and one pops up in my feed I think I need to make one of those. I love their rustic look. All the deliciousness of a pie without the hassle of creating a beautiful looking crust.  I decided to go with an almond flour crust to make the galette naturally gluten free. It took a couple of tries to get a good consistency on the crust that held together while baking. Since almonds are naturally oily - not much butter is needed for the crust. The crust is still a bit challenging to work with, as the more you work with it the more it begins to fall apart. I highly recommend starting with a well chilled crust and rolling the crust out onto parchment paper to avoid having to transfer it later. 

Peaches are so sweet this time of year so I kept the amount of sugar to a minimum to allow the natural sweetness of the peaches to really shine through.  Just add a scope of vanilla ice cream and you have the perfect summer dessert. Or top the galette with a some yogurt and you have a delicious breakfast or snack! 

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Gluten Free Almond Peach Galette

Makes: 1 Galette

For the Almond Crust

3 c almond flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp cold butter, cut into cubes

1 egg, beaten

egg wash (1 egg + 1 tbsp water)

1/2 c slivered almonds (optional)

For the Peach Filling

2-3 large peaches, sliced

2 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp almond flour

Directions

In a large bowl mix together almond flour, salt and sugar

Using a pastry cutter or your hands, mix together almond flour mixture, butter and egg until dough comes together. Take care not to over mix. Flecks of butter should still be visible in the dough

Wrap dough in plastic wrap and place in the fridge to chill for a minimum of one hour

In a sperate bowl, combine peaches, sugar and almond flour. Stir to combine. Allow peaches to sit for a minimum of 10 minutes before assembling galette

Pre-heat oven to 400F.

Roll almond dough out between 2 pieces of parchment paper. Dough should be about 1/2 inch thick and approximately 7-8 inches in diameter

Arrange peaches in the centre of the almond dough leaving an approximately 2 inch boarder. Gently fold the excess crust up and over the peach filling

Brush crust with egg wash and if using top crust with slivered almonds

Transfer galette on parchment paper to a baking sheet. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until filling bubbly and crust is golden brown

Allow galette to cool on baking sheet for 10-15 minutes before serving. Galette can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for three days