Baking Day

Baking is one of those hobbies that lights me up and calms me down. It’s a skill that I want to hone and pass down to my kids. I love baking with Owen. It’s not all clean, pretty, and occasionally the finished product can’t be shared with friends—toddler antics! But it’s still time well spent.

Last year, I dabbled in mostly breads. Pizza crust became my specialty, and I’m still improving my sandwich loaf recipe. Kneading bread dough is the most therapeutic action for me. Many negative emotions were worked out while I created dough for loaves, rolls, and crust.

This year, all I want to make are tarts! My father-in-law gave me a variety of tart pans for Christmas. (The equivalent of a bouquet of hand dyed yarn!) Last weekend I decided to try my hand at my first ever tart. An apple tart recipe that I found on this blog. I’m not the biggest fan of the traditional American Apple Pie–mushy apple texture. Hopefully, this tart will restore baked apples on my yummy list.

Owen was my big helper with the pie crust, and then got distracted when dad woke up. The next part, forming the crust in the pan, required a bit more skill that his toddler hands could do delicately. One day, I’ll have to make mini tarts, and let him press the dough into the pans himself.

As the crust blind baked, Owen snacked on pears while I made up the apple cinnamon mixture. I 100% forgot that I needed to let the crust cool completely before adding the custard mixture. Thank goodness it’s winter! The crust was set in the garage to cool while I baked the pie scraps with cinnamon sugar. The best part about making pie crust!

Then, I assembled the tart and attempted a rustic arrangement of apples on top. Slid it in the oven and eagerly waited 33 minutes. Without thinking that I should try it first, I invited a friend over to share a piece with me. *fingers crossed* that it’s baked through! She enthusiastically said it was delicious! I’d say it wasn’t perfect, but came out tasty enough! Has it restored baked apples to my yummy list? Not exactly, but I’m looking forward to trying out a Normandy Tart later on.