Blackberry Yogurt Tart with Lavender-Infused Honey

Since it's almost officially summer, we were in the mood for something light and fresh, preferably involving berries, and this tart fulfills all those requirements. It also was pretty easy and involved only the ingredients we already had in the house, so it's a perfect recipe for when it's hot out and you want something sweet in a hurry. My favorite part was the lavender-infused honey, which added a delicate note and the perfect amount of sweetness to the tart.


Here's the recipe (a Sandy Peach original):

For the Lavender-Infused Honey:

• 1/2 cup honey
• 2 tbs lavender (dried or fresh)

For the Crust:

• 1 1/3 cups flour
• 1/2 cup oatmeal
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 5 tbs butter, melted
• 3 tbs lavender-infused honey

For the Filling:

• 1 1/4 cups vanilla Greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 3 tbs nonfat dry milk (for thickening)
• 3 cups (about) fresh or frozen blackberries
• 3 tbs sugar
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp cornstarch mixed with 2 tsp water

 Directions:

For the honey:

1. Heat the honey over medium heat until it melts and turns translucent
2. Add the lavender and stir to combine
3. Simmer (don't boil!) for ten to fifteen minutes and remove from heat.

For the crust:

1. Whisk together flour, salt, and oatmeal to combine.
2. Add honey and melted butter and mix together with your hands until it forms moist crumbles.
3. Press the mixture into the bottom and halfway up the sides of a 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom.
4. Bake at 350 degrees F for ten minutes, or until golden.
5. Remove from oven and cool completely.

 

For the filling:

1. Mix berries, cinnamon, and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat.
2. When juice begins to come out, add the cornstarch and water mixture and simmer the berries for five more minutes, or until soft but not mushy.
3. Strain out excess juice from berry mixture.
4. Stir together yogurt, sugar, and dry milk; pour into cooled crust.
5. Drizzle remaining lavender honey over yogurt (heat it in the microwave if it's too thick) and then place berries evenly over the yogurt and honey.

 

Cut into slices and savor the summer!!

Brown Butter Bars with Caramelized Bananas

For our first post, we decided to combine two of our favorite flavors: brown butter and bananas. Yumm. We used Lil's delicious brown butter bar recipe (borrowed from her neighbor) and added some lovely bananas, which we then caramelized (because what this recipe needs is more butter, right?)

The flavors meshed well together, producing a rich and buttery bar with a hint of banana. We had two each last night and couldn't help devouring even more for breakfast this morning. Mmmmm sweet banana bliss.

Here's the recipe:

Brown Butter Bars 
For the crust:

• 8 oz unsalted butter
• 1/2 c powdered sugar, sifted 
• 1 1/2 c all-purpose flour 

For the filling:

• 3 large eggs 
• 1 c sugar 
• 3/4 c + 2 Tbs all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp salt 
• 1/2 tsp vanilla 
• 5 oz unsalted butter 
• caramelized bananas

For the crust:
1. Melt the butter in a pan at medium-high heat till the butter begins to brown (don't be scared if it starts to burn a little at the bottom, you'll sieve that out). When it turns a deep golden color and smells slightly nutty strain through a fine sieve into a container that can handle an extreme transition from hot to cold.

2. Freeze till it's solid; about one half-hour. We recommend pouring the butter into a large pan so that it freezes sooner.

3. Put the powdered sugar and flour in a large bowl. Cut bits of the cold brown butter into the sugar and flour. Use your hands to mix together till you get a crumbly, sandy mixture.

4. Press into a 9x13 inch baking dish. Chill for about a half-hour. Preheat oven to 375F. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until golden in color. Set aside to cool.

For the bananas:
1. Melt 3 tablespoons butter and 1/2 cup sugar in a medium skillet over medium heat. Let the mixture bubble for about five minutes, until all the sugar is completely smooth.

2. Remove from heat and add 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, whisking to combine.

3. Add 3 sliced bananas and gently mix into the caramel until it evenly coats the slices. Place in the refrigerator and chill until you need it.



For the filling:
1. Whisk together the eggs, vanilla, sugar, salt and flour in a large bowl. Place the butter in a pan and heat till the butter starts to brown. When the butter turns a deep golden color and smells nutty, once again, strain through a fine sieve. Watch out! The butter will be super hot (Michaela learned the hard way).

2. Pour butter into the egg mixture, whisking as you do so.
 

3.Spread half the filling over the baked crust. Then dollop the bananas evenly across the filling, making sure to leave some caramel over.


4. Spread the rest of the filling over the banana layer. And then drizzle the rest of the deliciousness over the top.

5. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the filling is golden brown and set, and cut into squares.

Enjoy!