Blueberry Basil Tart

January brings a lovely gray color to the sky and cold wind from the west. I prefer to avoid it at all costs but am never successful. If we must suffer through cold and snow we might as well spend time together and eat tasty food reminiscent of warmth and sunshine.

That's where blueberries come in. 

I wanted to make a quick dessert to bring to a party so figured I would whip up a nice tart. Mascarpone and goat cheese topped with roasted blueberries and fresh basil? Yes please!

The only catch - I mistakenly left my tart pan in Ohio when visiting my parents for Christmas. Options: make individual tarts (not so great for a party...), turn it into a galette (which wouldn't work because the cheese filling is added after baking), make it pizza-style (which could lead to some stains from blueberry juices), throw it in a pie pan and have messed up proportions. 

I opted for the cleanest and most party-friendly version and had to use a pie pan. Not ideal but it turned out tasty. Fortunately I now have my tart pan back so hopefully won't run into this problem again.

Luckily I had some pie dough chilling in the fridge. Simply roll it out and lay it into the tart pan (or in my case shallowest pie pan) and bake it until golden brown. I opted to spread on some apricot preserves on the crust edges for a bit of contrast but that's superfluous if you have a tart pan. 

While the crust is baking, rinse the blueberries and add sugar, lemon juice and vanilla. Mix gently then spread on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or Silpat. Trust me, it will make clean up much easier. 

Bake for 10-15 minutes until the blueberries are bubbly and smell divine.

Now the crust is cooling, the blueberries are roasting and I'm getting hungry. Let's mix up the cheese filling and put this thing together! 

Whip mascarpone and goat cheese together in a bowl. Add yogurt and sugar and mix until smooth. Add a pinch of salt to taste. Spread the filling in the cooled crust.

Take the blueberries out of the oven and let cool briefly. Scoop up the juicy berries and layer on top of the cheese mixture. 

Chop fresh basil and sprinkle on top of the blueberries. Enjoy!

Blueberry Basil Tart with Mascarpone and Goat Cheese

Inspiration: Roasted Blueberry Tart by Lemons for Lulu

Ingredients:

• Crust for 11 inch tart shell (or 9 inch pie pan)

• 2 cups fresh blueberries

• 1 teaspoon vanilla

• 1/4 cup sugar

• Pinch of salt

• ¼ cup basil, roughly chopped

• 8 oz mascarpone at room temp

• 4 oz goat cheese at room temp

• 1/4 cup plain greek yogurt

• 1 tablespoon sugar

Preparation:

Prepare crust and place in an 11 inch tart pan. Bake at 400°F for 10-15 minutes until golden brown. Increase oven temperature to 450°. In a small bowl, combine blueberries, vanilla, 1/4 cup sugar and salt. Mix gently and spread onto a sheet pan lined with parchment paper or Silpat. Roast for 10-12 minutes or until bubbly.

In a separate bowl, whip mascarpone with goat cheese until till creamy. Add yogurt and 1 tablespoon of sugar then beat until smooth. Spread cheese mixture onto cooled crust. Top with warm berries. Sprinkle with fresh basil just before serving.

Devour.