Basic Tart Dough

Basic Tart Dough

What is a tart? No, not a saucy medieval lady with wicked wiles, though that term has been used in times past. The simplest description would be that it is a type of pie. If you really get down to it, there isn’t much distinction between a tart, a pie, a flan or a quiche when it comes to the dough end of the equation – or much of anything else for that matter.

English Scones with Blueberry Stilton and Lavender

English Scones with Blueberry Stilton and Lavender

Scones are on the list of foods I detested from childhood because I’d never had them prepared quite to my tastes. I associated the word “scones” with the heeby-jeeby tactile sensation I get from pulling wet sweaters out of the washing machine or squeezing cotton balls. Sounds weird, I know, but that’s what scones reminded me of until a recent 4:30 a.m. airport adventure with all three of my kits in tow. After baggage was checked and carry-on’s were rifled through to a soundtrack of tired toddler wailing, we passed a coffee/tea/baked goods stand from a chain I’m not familiar with and don’t remember the name of.

Pork Pocket Pies with Kale

Pork Pocket Pies with Kale

So I finally picked up some Kale. This thick, green, lettuce looking “superfood” I’ve been seeing everywhere (everywhere means Facebook.) I think I assumed, at first, that it was a fancy lettuce, like spinach, which was the “it” lettuce of the 2000’s if I remember correctly, and had dubbed Kale in my mind “the hipster lettuce”.

Pumpkin Pie Empanadas

Pumpkin Pie Empanadas

I love baking.

Okay, what I actually love is the end product of baking.

Strike that.. I love the idea of baking. I hate the actual hassle of baking.

Actually.. I think I kind of hate baking. Its messy, it takes forever, I usually end up burning something and its messy. Did I mention that? I hate doing messy things. Mostly because I hate having to clean it up. I already have a 3 year old I who is nothing more than a little bundle of chaotic energy. I don’t like having to clean up my baking messes and then wrangle a sugared up tot on top of that.