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Ingredients
1 box PillsburyTM refrigerated pie crusts, softened as directed on box
½ cup plus 1 to 2 teaspoons of powdered sugar
2 tablespoons butter, softened
2 oz (from 8 oz package) cream cheese, softened
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
⅓ cup jam or preserves (raspberry, strawberry, blackberry, apricot), stirred well
1 3 ½-4 inch flower-shaped cookie cutter
Mini muffin pans

Directions
We all know that April showers bring May flowers, but as I like to say, April showers bring mini cream cheese-jam flower tarts… Not as nice of a ring to it, but still delicious.

With spring in full bloom, it is time to start taking advantage of all the fun and tasty treats that come along with the season. This recipe can be made using jams or preserves from local farmers markets which makes it perfect to tuck away for a rainy spring day.

To make the flower tarts, you will first want to preheat the oven to 450 F. Start by taking one of the pie crusts out of the packaging and place it on a lightly floured surface. Unroll the crust and flatten it using a rolling pin until it becomes a 12-inch circle.

Using a flower-shaped cookie cutter — approximately 3 ½ to 4 inches in diameter — cut the crust into 8 flowers. Once you have run out of space, remove the cut-out dough and roll the remaining into a ball. Flatten the extra crust into a circle again using the rolling pin and repeat cutting out flowers until you run out of crust.

Once the crust has been cut into flowers, carefully place one cutout inside cups of a mini muffin tin and press them to the bottom. The cutouts should be staggered in every other cup until you run out of room on the tin.

In order for the cutouts to fit into the mini muffin tin cups, you may need to overlap the petals going clockwise around the flower. This will help to make the crust into a little cup before placing it inside the muffin tin.

After the cutouts are placed in the muffin tin, gently fold the petals flat onto the top of the pan. You will also want to prick the sides bottom of each one with a fork so the dough does not puff up and limit the filling space on the inside.

Place the muffin tin(s) in the oven and bake the pans for five to seven minutes or until light golden brown. Once they are baked, allow the shells to cool in the pan for five minutes. After five minutes, remove the shells from the pan and place them on a cooling rack. Cool the shells completely; this should take about 15 minutes.

Fully embrace the spring season with these flower tarts. Once the dough has been cooked to a nice golden brown, fill with cream cheese and a jam of your choosing and enjoy.
Meghan Hendricks | Photo Editor

If you only have one mini muffin tin, you will need to repeat the process of stagger placing the cutouts into the cups and baking them until all of the shells are baked.

While the shells are cooling, make the cream cheese filling. In a small bowl with an electric mixer or using a stand mixer, beat together the softened butter and cream cheese on low speed for one to two minutes. Beat until smooth and creamy, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally to make sure everything is well incorporated. Add in the vanilla extract and ½ cup of powdered sugar and continue beating until smooth.

Separately, portion out some of the jam you intend to use for the tops of the tarts into bowls and stir until the jam or preserves become smooth. Try to keep the jams or preserves at room temperature before using — it will make it easier to stir.

Once the shells are cool, lightly sprinkle 2 to 3 teaspoons of powdered sugar over the petals using a fine-mesh sieve or sugar duster. Then it’s time to start assembling the tarts.

Using either a piping bag or a spoon, portion out 2 teaspoons of the cream cheese mixture into each shell and carefully smooth out the top. I personally used a spoon for this, but found it would have been easier to pipe the filling into the small opening.

Next, spoon about 1 teaspoon of the jam on top of the cream cheese filling and carefully spread to cover the bottom layer. You could also use a piping bag for this step if you wanted to.

After each tart has received both cream cheese and jam, they are assembled and ready to be enjoyed. Make sure to keep these tasty flower tarts refrigerated until ready to serve!

Published on April 19, 2023 at 11:17 pm