Hello everyone!  This recipe is one of my new favorites and guests have requested that I add it to the website.  So I have added the Puff Pastry Tart recipe to the Boreas Inn website in the Recipe Section, accessible from the opening page of the website and from our “Cuisine” page –or from this hotlink!  Boreas Inn Recipes For a unique dining experience and a breakfast you will always remember, come to Boreas Inn, a romantic beach getaway, located in the dunes of Long Beach, Washington.  Voted by KING5 TV viewers as their top three Best B&B in 2010’s Best of the Northwest Great Escapes, we continue to make our gourmet breakfasts a daily event worth waiting for! Boreas Inn was also voted by readers as the “Most Romantic Getaway” in the Best of the Discovery Coast this year in addition to “Best Omelette”.   For a luxury beach vacation, with fine beach front accommodations and fabulous dining both at Boreas Inn and our local dinner houses, come to the beautiful Long Beach Peninsula!

The Puff Pastry Tart recipe I use at Boreas is derived from the KCTS Cooks Breakfast cookbook compiled from the kitchens of viewers of Public Station KCTS in Seattle. We have contributed to this cookbook.  This is, by far, one of my favorite breakfast cookbooks and contributing towards viewer supported public television is something we love to do!  This recipe was originally contributed by Kim Walton of Seattle.  Thank you, Kim!!  And our guests thank you also!  There are three parts to this surprisingly easy recipe.  It can be adapted in many ways by cutting the puff pastry into four pieces and making a savory filling or even a larger version of this lovely tart.  I also have made these tarts in mini-muffin tins for just a bite for our “second” pastries at our three and four-course breakfasts at Boreas Inn.  I will add an image when I remember to take a picture next time I bake them! (Sorry!) Enjoy the recipe!

Puff Pastry Cheesecake Tarts

Cheese Filling

2              tablespoons butter at room temp

1              8 oz. package cream cheese at room temp

1              egg

1 ½        teaspoons vanilla

4             tablespoons brown sugar

3             teaspoons lemon juice

½-1       teaspoon lemon zest

1             teaspoon orange liqueur (optional)

Mix all ingredients with an electric mixer until smooth and set aside.

Blueberry Filling (or any other berry of your choice)

2          tablespoons water (less if using frozen berries)

1          tablespoon cornstarch

1-3       tablespoons white sugar (depending upon sweetness of berries)

1           tablespoon lemon juice

1           teaspoon lemon zest

1           cup berries

2           teaspoons orange liqueur (optional)

Pastry Shells

1          package frozen puff pastry, thawed

1          egg beaten to brush on pastry

Preheat oven to 400 and spray regular size muffin tins with cooking spray. Open up the puff pastry sheets and cut the pastry into three long rectangles along the folds.  Cut each rectangle into three squares so you have nine squares per sheet. Press each square completely into the muffin tins so that the edges show above the top of each tin opening.

Place about 1 heaping teaspoon of the cheese filling on the center of each puff pastry. The cheese mixture will puff up during the baking process.  Place a dollop of the fruit filling on top of the cheese filling. Brush the pastry with the beaten egg and bake approximately 20 minutes until pastry is golden brown.

Note: You can use a canned peach or apricot cut side down over the cheese filling instead of the berries.  If you’d like to be able to use only a few puff pastry tarts at a time, after composing the tarts (don’t bake!) wrap tightly in plastic, place muffin tins in the freezer and once frozen, gently pop each tart out of the tin, place in a zip lock freezer bag and put back in the freezer.  Place the frozen pastries into muffin tins in desired numbers, brush with egg wash and bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes until the pastry is golden brown.