Barefoot Bonanza

I'm a bit late with this posting, so I decided to create a meal, so to speak.

First, there is the appetizer -- Tomato and Goat Cheese Tarts, chosen by Anne of Anne Strawberry.



This is a delicious and simple appetizer or first course that uses pre-made puff pastry, an item that should be present in everyone's freezer, right? Usually. I hadn't been to the grocery in nearly 3 weeks, so yesterday I braved the afternoon crowds and headed for Trader Joe's and the local grocery. I've used three kinds of puff pastry before, TJ's, Pepperidge Farms, and my own. Of the three, TJ's performs the worst. I was disappointed that the tarts didn't rise much even though they tasted fine. PF does well, and my handmade puff pastry does the best, but there is a time issue there. I may try again with the TJ's brand but not roll it out and see if that makes a difference.

The only thing I changed on these tarts was the cheese. Try as I might, I just cannot tolerate goat cheese, so I used some herbed feta in its place.


Overall, I was pleased with the end result. I decided to bake off the scraps and spread them with Nutella for a quick snack.


The next course on my BB menu was Sauteed Broccolini, which was selected by Mary of Meet Me in the Kitchen. This is not an easy vegetable to find in the market, but I did score a package at TJ's. I really enjoyed the added flavors of garlic and lemon, and it certainly was a quick side dish to prepare.




Finally, the dessert. Tia of Southern, Eh? chose Brownie Pudding.

A little bit of this goes a long way, that's for sure. This is a very rich dessert, and it was a big hit with my daughter. I believe she finished it while I was at work, because I came home to an empty serving dish one evening. Clean, but empty.


I'm looking forward to April's menu and hoping I won't be so late with the cooking and posting. Please stop by the Barefoot Bloggers site for more information.