Blackberry Kahlua Cream Tart

Ah...blackberries.  I hate them when they're growing on or near my property because they'll take over everything.  I hate them for having such sharp thorns that go deep into the skin when I cut the branches that come from the neighbor's property over my fence.

But, come summer, when the fruits are ripe and juicy and sweet, then I love them.  The fruits are deep black and so easy to pick.  And what's best is that they're free, as long as I have time to pick.  This tart was made because my husband suggested one day that we went and picked blackberries in the neighborhood.  Anytime I can spend time together with him, however short, will be a good time.  So we traipsed about in one walking trail not far from home; there's someone kindly enough to clear a path around the thick bushes making it easy for us to gather the fruits.  It took us about half an hour to gather about 4 cups of fruits and we came home happy.

I love the flavor and texture of this tart; cool and smooth seedless blackberry puree that sits on top of shortbread-like crust with billowy whipped cream topping.  What's not to like?

Blackberry Kahlua Cream Tart

Makes 10 servings

1 10-inch Tart Pastry shell, fully baked--recipe follows.  I used a rectangular tart pan instead of an 10-inch round tart pan

Blackberry Puree

4 cups fresh blackberries (save some for decorations on top of the tart)

1/2 cup sugar

4 teaspoons cornstarch

Grated zest of 1 lemon

Kahlua Whipping Cream

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar

2 tablespoons Kahlua

Cool the tart shell thoroughly on a rack.  Transfer the shell to a large, flat plate or platter, cover with foil, and refrigerate.

To make the blackberry puree, process the blackberries in a blender or food processor until smooth.  Strain the puree through a fine-mesh strainer, working and pushing it with a spoon so you end up with as much seedless puree as possible; you should be left with close to 2 cups of puree.

Put the puree into a non-aluminum saucepan.  Mix the sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl and stir it, along with the lemon zest, into the puree.  Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often.  Hold it at a low boil for 1 minute, stirring, then scrape it into a glass casserole or pie pan and place it in the fridge to cool.  Once it has cooled, scrape it into the tart shell, evening it with a fork.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

When you are just about ready to assemble the tart, put the beaters and whipping cream bowl in the freezer.  Once they're chilled, beat the cream until it almost holds soft peaks, then add the sugar and Kahlua.  Beat until good and firm, but don't let it get grainy.  Spread the whipped cream over the puree and arrange a few blackberries here and there if you saved some out.  Slice and serve right away or hold in the fridge, covered for up to several hours.

Tart Pastry

Makes 1 10-inch tart shell

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

10 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch pieces

2 tablespoons (approximately) cold water

In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, and salt.  Add the butter and cut it in until the mixture resembles very small crumbs, with all the flour having been dampened by the fat; it should be actually be starting to clump together without the water.  At that point add the cold water, a teaspoon at a time, tossing and compacting the mixture with a fork until the dough coheres.

When the dough coheres, knead it once in the bowl to distribute the butter, then flatten it on a sheet of plastic wrap into a disk about 1/2 inch thick.  Wrap and refrigerate for about 30 minutes before rolling.  

To roll the dough:  Put the dough on a sheet of lightly floured wax paper.  Lightly flour the top of the dough, then roll it into a circle 13 to 13 1/2 inches in diameter.  Carefully invert the dough over the pan and tuck the dough down into the pan without stretching it.  Trim the dough off flush with the top of the pan.  Cover and refrigerate until baking.

Preheat the oven to 400F.  Line the shell with foil and tuck in into the pastry.  Pour dried beans or pie weights into the foil.  Place the weighted shell in the oven and bake for 15 minutes.  Remove the pan from the oven and very carefully lift the foil out of the pan with the beans still in it.  Pierce the bottom of shell several times with a fork and put the shell back in the oven for about 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown.  

Source: adapted from Country Baking by Ken Haedrich

Marionberry Pie

I'm back blogging after being absent for a while.  I was away on a vacation to California the last week of June and was back in town just before the 4th of July to enjoy it at home.  As usual, fireworks were being deployed in the front yard by a happy teen and the performance was highly encouraged by his parents and grandparents.  I'm glad to be back home again; the vacation was normally a satisfying break from daily grind because we got to spend time as a family together, saw friends and family member, and enjoyed unfamiliar scenery.  

Summer has been a gorgeous season here in Oregon.  While we're away the temperature stayed in the upper 90's to sometime 100's.  As a result the fruits have been bountiful and I got to enjoy plenty of Oregon berries.  I've canned strawberries and raspberries as jams and doled out a few jars to a friend and family member in California.  After I went back home I looked for farm that has U-pick Marionberry as I seldom pick these in the summer.  Weird, huh, because these are supposed to be the berry of Oregon, the native child of the state.  There's one farm out in Beaverton that has U-pick Marionberry, which my son and I went to last weekend, called Hoffman Farm.  It was bit of a drive but it was beautiful out in the country.  We got still plentiful of berries despite the long and thorny vines that we had to avoid.  We also picked some blackberries and raspberries though they're almost out mostly because the heat baked them on the vines.  

I managed to make jam from these beauty and still have leftover.  I then decided to try a pie using filling that's prepared with a different method.  I've used Clear Jel from making canned pie filling before and I decided to utilize it again this time.  Berry pie filling always has lots of water in it that by using Clear Jel I can avoid overly runny filling.  The crust is all-butter crust which smells yummy during baking time.  In the end, even if the filling is still a bit runny, the crust collapse here and there, it's still a delicious pie that's even better with whipped cream or ice cream.

So here is my hard-earned prize after a hard-worked day of picking berries!

Marionberry Pie

Makes 1 9-inch pie

1 cup + 2 Tablespoons chilled unsalted butter

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 Tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar

3 Tablespoons ice water

Cut butter into 1" pieces.  Chill it while you measure other ingredients.  Mix the flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl.  Add the butter and toss until coated.  Using your fingers and palms, work the butter into smaller, irregular pieces, moving quickly and aggressively, so it stays cold.  You want some pieces pressed flat and thin and others that are larger and chunkier.

Combine the vinegar and ice water in a small cup.  Drizzle the liquid over the flour mixture, running your fingers through the flour as go to evenly distribute.  Knead in the bowl until the dough starts to hold together.  It will still look a little dry, but resist the urge to add more water; excess liquid can lead to a tough dough.

Turn the dough out onto a work surface (no extra flour needed) and smash with the heels of your hands a few more times, working in any shaggy edges.  You should still see large-ish pieces of butter and maybe a dry spot here and there.

Cut dough in half.  Press each half into a 1"-inch thick disk and wrap in plastic.  Chill at least 1 hour (and up to 3 days) to firm up the butter and allow the dough to hydrate.

While the dough chills, make the filling.

Marionberry Pie Filling

Makes 4 cups

3 1/2 cups Marionberries

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup + 1 Tablespoon Clear Jel

1 1/3 cups cold water

1 Tablespoon + 1 teaspoon lemon juice

Place sugar and Clear Jel in a large saucepan, whisk to combine thoroughly.  Tip in the water and boil the mixture over medium high heat; stirring constantly.  Cook until the mixture begins to thicken.  It will turn from the milky white color to a clear color.  Once the mixture thickens, add lemon juice and cook for 1 minute; stirring constantly.

Remove the mixture from the heat and add in the berries.  Don't over stir, just fold them well.

Continue with making of the pie:  Roll out 1 disk of dough on a lightly floured surface to a 13" round (about 1/4" thick).  Slide onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and chill while you roll out remaining dough to a rectangle, measuring 8" x 14" to make lattice top.  Cut this dough on the long side into strips, each strip measuring 2" x 14".  You want the strips to be a bit longer than the diameter of the pie round.  Any excess strip can be cut with scissors later.  Slide strips onto parchment-lined baking sheet and chill.

Transfer the round dough into a pie dish; lift up edges to allow dough to slump down into dish.  Scrape in the filling.  Beat in 1 large egg with 1 teaspoon water in a small bowl.  Brush outer edge of bottom dough with half of the egg wash; then weave lattice strips over filling.  Cut excess strips and press each strip to the edges.  Fold over the rest of the dough that's hanging out on the dish.  Brush pie with remaining egg wash and sprinkle with 2 Tablespoons demerara or granulated sugar.

Preheat oven to 350F.  Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and set pie dish on top.  Bake pie until crust is deep golden brown on top and bottom and juices are bubbling, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.  If the top is browning too quickly, cover it with aluminum foil loosely.  Let the pie cool at least 4 hours before slicing.

Sources adapted from:

Bon Appetit, June 2015 (Pie Crust)

The Creative Home, July 2011 (Pie Filling)