Strawberry Cheeesecake Tart {Wednesday Wins}

Ok!  I've got a lot of wins today, so let's jump right to them!

I french braided my hair again today, and it was good enough that it held through my morning run!  Woo!
 
Today was the first day of school for the county.  And I was sitting in bed reading when the bells rang for high school classes to start.
 
To celebrate my not-first-day-of-school, I decided to pay a visit to my very best friend.  

 

Of course, it's the beach!  And it was lovely.  The waves were super tiny, and it was so quiet and peaceful.

Also, this is one of my favorite views on the planet.  When you walk up over the dunes and you catch just a glimpse of the ocean.  Love it.

I made some super yummy ham and cheese muffins for lunch, but that recipe is for another day.

Here's what you want to see today:

 Yep, I'm super proud of this single serving baby!  Actually, that's just a tiny bit of a lie though.  It made two servings.  Oh darn... I guess I'll have to eat another one tomorrow.  Boo hoo!

 This recipe is a little more involved than the "mug" recipes.  It does require an oven.  *Gasp*  And there are several steps.  But, let me tell you, it was worth it all the way!

Strawberry Cheesecake Tarts for Two
Crust adapted from Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook
Makes: 2 tarts

Ingredients for Tart Crust:
1/4 cup and 1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
Handful of finely chopped almonds (optional)
2 tablespoons cold butter
1/2 egg yolk
3/4 teaspoon very cold water

Directions for Tart Crust:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Combine flour, sugar, and almonds in a medium bowl.
3. Cut in cold butter using a pastry blender or a fork until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
4. In a small bowl, stir together the cold water and 1/2 egg yolk.
5. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and knead with your hands until the dough can form a ball.
6. If the dough isn't too sticky, you can go ahead and roll it out, but if it is sticky, cover it with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge for up to an hour.
7. Divide the dough into two balls and roll each one into a circle that is about 5 inches in diameter.  Try to use as little flour as possible.  (I rolled mine in between two sheets of wax paper with just a tiny bit of flour on it.)
8. Transfer each circle into a 4 inch tartlet pan (I don't have any tart pans, so I used ramekins and they worked out just fine).  Press into the pans and cut off the excess dough.  Prick the bottoms and sides several times with a fork.
9. Cover tarts tightly with two layers of aluminum foil.  (I'm not sure why it's two layers, but that's what the cookbook said to do, so I obeyed.)
10. Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 8 minutes.
11. Remove aluminum foil and bake for another 5-6 minutes until crusts start to turn golden brown.
12. Cool before gently removing from pans.

Assembling the Tarts:
While the crusts are cooling, you can prepare the filling.  Here's where you can be creative and come up with your own versions of the tart.  Below is what I did to make the tart you see in the photos, but your options are as endless as your imagination.

Filling:
1 box Jell-O Cheesecake Pudding (I used fat free, sugar free.)
1 1/2 cups cold milk
A handful of fresh strawberries

1. Whisk together the pudding mix and the milk, then place in the fridge.  I used 1 1/2 cups milk instead of the recommended 2 cups because I wanted a nice, thick, rich filling.  *Also, you won't use all the pudding for just the two tarts, so I guess you'll just have to eat it!
2. Once the crusts are cool, and the pudding is set, you can assemble the tart by filling it with your desired amount of pudding and garnishing with berries.  *Note: the tarts are best eaten on the day they are assembled, otherwise, the crust gets soggy with the pudding filling.

Enjoy your delicious treat!  Mine was amazing!  I'm already trying to figure out how to change it up  for tomorrow!  I'm definitely thinking chocolate!  Yum yum!

And one last win, tonight I get to have dinner with one of my best friends!  Yay for real human interaction!  Lol!