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American Flag Fruit Tarts

Updated: Jul 28, 2022

"There is nothing wrong with America

that cannot be cured with

what is right in America."

– William J. Clinton

This Memorial Day weekend, I tried to think of what has united our nation amongst all the division it has experienced the last couple of years. All I could come up with was Death. Morbid, right? But hear me out, I promise a sweet ending. This IS a dessert blog, it has to have a sweet ending!

The last time I saw people from opposing sides come together in unity was to honor our former Commander in Chief, George H. W. Bush. I saw my parents, long-time Democratic supporters, tearing up as they watched on television the state funeral. One thing that stood out to me was the many accounts of how sweet and kind the former President was, repeatedly quoted as wanting a “kinder, gentler nation.” Bush Sr. made many friends, one of which was former president Clinton, the man quoted in the intro of this post, and his direct political rival at one point. Post-term, both men continued to work together on various humanitarian efforts, drawing truth to their statements of righteousness and kindness.

So while it’s so easy to focus on everything that’s wrong with the American society today, I want to draw my attention to what’s right. Despite numerous political views, this country is able to draw volunteers to fight and go to war for us. Despite our tapestry of religious backgrounds, we cannot deny the honor that is owed to every man and woman that have served and died in uniform for this country. Despite what economic status we or the person across town is in, we can all agree that freedom is something we all aspire to for ourselves. This aspiration is most exemplified by the people who we fly our flags half staff till noon today.

My little family here in Vegas does not have a flag. This is ironic considering the fact that my husband is currently serving in the Navy, and we are a military family transplanted here for his service. But, this being our fourth move in 3 years, it is not a surprise we have not given much thought into outside embellishments. Instead, I expressed my patriotism the way I knew best… baking!

These goodies were given to my husband’s office the Friday before they embarked on their three day weekend. It is a fresh fruit mini tart made into the likeness of Old Glory. Creamy diplomat cream is spread generously on flaky puff pastry and topped with red strawberries, blue blueberries, and white whipped cream. How much more patriotic can a tiny tart get!

In deciding what to make, I wanted to use what was already in our fridge. My usual go-to for tarts is sugar dough, or what the French call pâte sucrée, which you can make from my last post Blueberry Lemon Meringue Tart. But for these mini tarts, I used the faster option of baking the frozen puff pastry sheets in my freezer. Did this baker say “frozen”? Yes I did, and for good reasons I swear. Just like last week, I simply wanted to make the most of my time.