Your Best Summer Friend: Blueberry Puff Pastry

Repeat after me: “Puff pastry is my friend.”

 We could sit here and talk all day about the different kinds of savory and sweet treats you can make with puff pastry, maybe even exchange a few recipes, but seeing as it is blueberry season and I haven’t yet paid my respect to this power-packed blue beauty, I want to share this dessert recipe with you.

As soon as I laid eyes on this recipe, I knew it was going to be the next one I would share with you. A fresh in-season fruit, an easy pastry shortcut and a few more simple ingredients really are the perfect formula to a spectacular yet easy show stopper dessert!

Before the summer fruits and veggies turn to the fall selection at the , grab yourself a pint of blueberries and the ingredients listed below and you and whoever you chose to be so lucky enough to share this with will be in for a light, flakey, fruity summer treat.

Like many flavor combinations (bacon and eggs, chocolate and orange… ok, chocolate and anything, cinnamon and sugar), lemon and blueberries, as combined in this recipe, seem like a perfect pairing. So show up at your next social occasion with this in hand! They’ll love you for it!

Blueberry Tart (credit: Realsimple.com)

Ingredients:

Flour for the work surface

1 8-ounce sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed

1 large egg, beaten

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

4 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest

3 tablespoons confection sugar

2 cups blueberries

Directions:

Heat oven to 375 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, unfold the sheet of pastry and roll it into a 10-by-12-inch rectangle. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Using the tip of a knife, score a 1-inch border around the pastry without cutting all the way through. Brush the border with the egg and sprinkle with the granulated sugar. Bake until golden and puffed, 18 to 22 minutes.

Using the tip of a knife, rescore the border of the cooked pastry without cutting all the way through. Gently press down on the center of the pastry sheet to flatten it. Let cool to room temperature, 15 to 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, with an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the cream, lemon zest, and two tablespoons of the confectioners’ sugar and beat until smooth. Spread the cream cheese mixture evenly within the borders of the pastry.

Arrange the blueberries in a single layer over the filling and sprinkle with the remaining tablespoon of confection sugar.