Sugar Cookie Fruit Tartlets

I had already defrosted a ball of sugar cookie dough for tea when I remembered that I had planned to do something with the half cup of boysenberries I had picked that morning…for tea.  Instead of either putting the cookie dough back in the freezer or making two tea items, I threw them together.

The main difference between sugar cookie dough and pastry dough is the sugar.  Structurally and procedurally, they're the same thing.  Boysenberries are very tart, like raspberries, so I figured they could compensate for the sugar in the crust.  I just used half as much as I would have if there was a plain pastry crust.  The couple of bites I ate without much cookie in them were really sour, so it was a good call.

Notice how much I'm stressing the tartness of the berries.  Don't try to do this with a sweet filling.  You'll hurt someone.

My biggest concern was actually that the cookie would overbake while I was waiting for the berries to cook.  By making these small tartlets and not piling the berries past the rim, everything finished at the same time.  The berries still had their shape, but the sugar had glazed with the juices into what you would consider a pie filling.  The edges of the crust got a little dark, but everything touching the filling was still soft cookie.

2" ball of sugar cookie dough
*1/2 C berries
1 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp butter

1.  Roll the cookie dough into a circle roughly 4-1/2" across.  Coax into a 3" mini tartlet pan with a removable bottom.  Trim off the excess.  Preheat oven to 350º, even if the cookie dough recipe calls for higher.

2.  In a bowl, toss berries with sugar and cornstarch.  Pour into tart shell and arrange in a single layer.  Dot with the butter.

3.  Bake until the cookie edges are browned and the berries are softened, 15 to 20 minutes.  Allow to cool before loosening shell from the pan and removing tart.

Makes a single tartlet.

Difficulty rating  π  (assuming you already had the dough made)