I prepared tiny treats for my Bunco group last tonight. I created a Mexican-themed canape and made the strawberry chocolate tartlets from our Desserts cookbook. Both are best served within half an hour of preparation, but are good cold.
First, I thought it would be fun to make canapes with corn tortillas (gluten-free) using the scalloped pastry cutter. I started with standard unbaked corn tortillas.
I was able to get 4 cutouts from each tortilla. Yes, there was waste, but at a little over $2 for the entire package of tortillas, using 7-8 for this purpose wasn't expensive. And, my dogs were thrilled with the leftover treats. I laid them over the back of the mini-tartlet tray and baked them for 10 minutes at 350°. I thought they might mold around the shape of the tray as they got warm. They did not, so next time I will just do them on the Silpat®. 
I chopped about a third of an onion in the food processor, added a can of partially drained black beans, and pulsed until it was creamy (You could use any bean dip). 
After arranging the mini-tortillas on a Silpat®, I put about a teaspoon full of bean dip on each mini-tortilla and topped it with shredded cheddar and cojack cheese (Any prepackaged Mexican mix would work). I popped them back into the oven until the cheese melted. In the interim, I finely chopped a tomato by hand for the garnish.
After arranging the mini-tortillas on a Silpat®, I put about a teaspoon full of bean dip on each mini-tortilla and topped it with shredded cheddar and cojack cheese (Any prepackaged Mexican mix would work). I popped them back into the oven until the cheese melted. In the interim, I finely chopped a tomato by hand for the garnish. Best served popping hot out of the oven.
The trick to preparing the Strawberry Chocolate Tartlets is to make them uniform. The recipe calls for mid-size berries. If you've noticed, mid-sized strawberries are hard to find unless you pick your own or have a huge number from which to select. Long into the process, I discovered that if you cut off enough of the large berry, it will work just fine. It also leaves you with leftover sliced berries for your cereal in the morning :) Since many in my Bunco group avoid caffeine late in the day, I made some without the chocolate chips.
The process is straightforward. After cutting the pastry shapes and putting them into the mini-tartlet tray, cut the stem end of the strawberries, dip the end in sugar, and put them into the shells sugar-side down. Add 3 (or more!) chocolate chips to each. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes. Allow to cool a bit before serving.
© 2011 Kristi B. Weber, Independent Representative, Demarle at Home. All Rights Reserved
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