Free Form Birthday Blueberry Tart

At last! I've found my way back into the kitchen. It took my birthday for it to happen, but I finally felt the itch to do a little cooking and it was such fun. I spent a good portion of a beautiful Saturday puttering around after a visit to the Brighton Farmer's Market — my new Saturday haunt! We grilled a whole chicken which I can not say enough about. If you have the time, it well worth it because tat's all the effort you need. A little olive oil, salt, pepper and about an hour and a half of cooking time — the taste is just incredible. For dessert I made this blueberry tart which I think you're going to love. (I'm still adjusting to the lighting in the new place so bear with the photography…)

The recipe was part of an article in this month's Food & Wine about the Island Creek oyster farm in Duxbury Bay in Massachusetts. I absolutely love oysters and the photos of a little floating shack out in the bay with people coming out in the evenings to cook together and eat and relax… sigh. It sounded so dreamy.  I want to make all the oyster recipes, but for now settled on this tart with blueberries fresh from a Michigan farm. The crust is quite similar to this fall tart I love to make and the taste  reminded me that I need to make more tarts! There is a hint of candied ginger in the crust and next time I think I will add even a bit more than the tablespoon called for in the recipe. 

Free-Form Blueberry Tart
via Food & Wine

Pastry
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for sprinkling
1 tablespoon minced candied ginger
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 sticks cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon ice water

Filling

1/4 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups blueberries
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 egg white, beaten
In a food processor, combine the 1 1/2 cups of flour with the candied ginger and salt and pulse to mix. Add the butter and pulse until it is the size of small peas. Sprinkle on the ice water and pulse just until the pastry starts to come together. Turn the pastry out onto a lightly floured work surface and pat it into a disk. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 2 hours, or until firm.

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the pastry to a 14-inch round about 1/8 inch thick. Fold the pastry in half (I like to fold it over the rolling pin) and transfer it to the prepared baking sheet. Unfold the pastry and refrigerate for 15 minutes.

While the pastry is chilling, make the filling and preheat the oven to 375°. In a large bowl, mix the 1/4 cup of sugar with the lemon zest and flour. Fold in the blueberries and lemon juice and let stand for 15 minutes. (I added a couple of peaches to the mix but they melted away to almost nothing. The blueberries are the star here.)

Spoon the blueberries in the center of the pastry, leaving a 1 1/2-inch border all around. Fold the pastry border up and over the blueberries, pleating it as necessary. Brush the egg white on the pastry and sprinkle with sugar (raw sugar is lovely if you have it). Bake for about 55 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown and the filling starts to bubble. Transfer the baking sheet to a rack and let the tart cool to warm. Cut into wedges and serve warm or at room temperature.