I’m catching up on posting the baking I’ve been doing lately, and I have to say that this dessert kinda let me down. So did the local grocery stores.
But it’s my own fault, I think. I’ve come to consider Dorie’s cookbook and this weekly baking group as sort of a go-to for fabulousness and decadence. I’ve rarely messed anything up beyond eating, and everything we’ve made I’ve really liked. I may not make something again because I am kinda lazy, but I thoroughly enjoy most of our projects the first time around.
So when the Other Eater’s Birthday fell on Father’s Day, I was challenged to fit it all into one 24 hour festival. There was a restaurant lunch with Dad and then a simple dinner on the patio (maybe soup? maybe leftovers? I can’t even remember – that’s how unremarkable it was) but I was sure I could turn it all around with Birthday Tart. It came from Dorie, after all.
Wrong.
I couldn’t find the all-butter pastry dough for this super simple tart, so I went with the Pepperidge Farm impostor that Dorie warned us about. She was absolutely right that it fell WAY short of greatness. Not even worth eating, really, except that it was easy to scarf down in the car on the way to the train the following morning. The apple was baked perfectly (not too soft), full of natural sweetness and yummy, but the crust ruined it all.
And sadly, I’m not into shopping trips for single ingredients. So since I can’t find the all-butter pastry dough in the two markets I go to regularly, I’m afraid I will forever miss out on this simple dessert…but I may feel differently during apple season.
Also, Dorie, in case you are reading, we both L-O-V-E-D the garlic scape pesto we had a week later, so all is forgiven.
On to the Brownies!
So sorry this was disappointing! If you have Trader Joe’s nearby, their puff pastry is pure butter, too, although they just pulled it until the fall (they told me it’s “seasonal”). I hope you will give this one another try because it can be fabulous and so easy.