Tiramisu Tart

This recipe was inspired by my original plan to make a layered Tiramisu dip for my Housewarming Party.  That never happened. I’ve learned after throwing dozens upon dozens of parties that sometimes I just have to throw in the towel on a couple planned menu items. Sometimes it all comes together and sometimes it doesn’t.

I always start with the party “must haves” and then leave the rest up to fate. As fate would have it, the Tiramisu dip was not made, but two days later this delicious Tiramisu Tart came into my life!

I knew I had to use the Mascarpone and Ricotta Cheese before they went bad but I scratched my original dip recipe. I felt like a dip was more party dessert then “have a slice after work/school” kind of dessert. I decided on a Tart simply because I had an unused Longaberger tart dish sitting on a shelf begging to be used!  I had originally planned to use Ginger Snap cookies for dipping, so I simply ground them up in my food processor and made them into the crust, then filled it with the dip. This made for a great evening treat all week!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups ginger snap crumbs
• 4 tbsp butter (melted)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup mascarpone cheese
• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup coffee syrup
• 2 tbsp marsala wine
• 1 tsbp cocoa powder
• 2 tbsp chocolate shavings

Start making the crust by combining the ginger snap crumbs, butter and sugar in a small mixing bowl. Next, press the mixture into a tart pan.

Place the crust in the refrigerator while making the filling.

Start the filling by creaming together the mascarpone, ricotta and sour cream.

Next, add in the brown sugar, coffee syrup and marsala wine.

Blend together well, 2-3 minutes, then place the mixture in the crust.

Dust the cocoa powder on top using a sifter (hopefully yours is less ghetto than mine, haha).

Then, shave the chocolate on top. I used a vegetable peeler and it worked just fine!

And voila, one delicious Tiramisu tart is complete!

This is a quick and simple dessert that can be made in 15 minutes or less with no need to bake!

There’s no excuse not to take this to your next dinner party! No one else will know how simple it is because it looks so decadent

I love the combination of the rich cheese,  sweet chocolate and coffee flavor!

Torani Syrups can be purchased a lot of places such as World Market or Smart and Final, to find the closest retailer to you, visit their website and they will locate the nearest store to you!  Pretty nifty!

If you prefer not to use the syrup, you can replace it with 2 shots of espresso.

♣ Vegetarian Option: This recipe is vegetarian.

♦ Gluten Free Option: My man Trader Joe sells delicious gluten free Ginger Snaps which

when used in this dish makes it gluten-free.

♥ All pottery seen on the littleleopardbook can be purchased by visiting www.longaberger.com/muffetbond or e-mailing keepsakebl@sbcglobal.net.

Pumpkin Hummus

This recipe came to me after eating some of the most amazing hummus of my life at the Little Italy farmers market last weekend. They had the most unusual flavors including my new favorite, Peanut Butter Hummus. It’s sweet and a little salty and makes the perfect snack with a little pita bread!

I was now inspired to make the next great hummus flavor. I decided on pumpkin.  It’s all the rage on Pinterest and with Fall upon us I thought it would be super fun to serve at all the different fall gatherings from Game days to Halloween parties!

If you like pumpkin, you will love this hummus!  The cinnamon gives it a slight sweetness, but the pumpkin shines through as the star!  This recipe only takes about 10 minutes to make and is something fun and different to take to a party or scoop into mason jars and give as gifts!

  Ingredients (makes 2 pints)

• 1 29 oz can garbanzo beans (chickpeas)
• 1 cup pumpkin
• 2 tbsp tahini
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2 tsp cinnamon

You really need a food processor for this recipe, but if you only have a blender and/or mini-chop it can be done in small batches.

I started by placing all of the ingredients in the blender.

It was just too many ingredients for the good ‘ol Osterizer to handle, so I began scooping out batches into my mini food processor.

While this is not the ideal method of making this recipe (as it turns your 10 minute prep time into 20), it works if you are one of those sad souls without a “big girl food processor” (i.e. me!)

Either way you do it, you want to blend all of the ingredients together until a creamy texture forms.

Place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or so, then serve with cinnamon sugar pita chips.

I made these by slicing 4 pieces of pita bread into triangles and tossing with 2 tbsp melted butter and 2 tbsp cinnamon/sugar mixture.

Place in the oven at 350° for 5-10 minutes, then serve with the hummus for a delicious treat!

I took this dish to a weekly “Game Night” my good friend PK hosts and everybody ate it up!

This is going to be a new fall staple at my house!

♣ Vegetarian Option: This recipe is vegetarian.

♦ Gluten Free Option: Substitute the Pita Bread with gluten-free pita bread (found in some specialty stores) or with this recipe  for homemade gluten-free pita bread.

♥ All pottery seen on the littleleopardbook can be purchased by visiting www.longaberger.com/muffetbond or e-mailing keepsakebl@sbcglobal.net.