Jamie Oliver's Portuguese Tarts

I bought myself the new Jamie Oliver cookbook with the hope that I would be able to create some fantastic, healthy meals for my family in 30 minutes.  I especially had it in mind for after the baby comes (which could be any day!).  The meals are designed so that if you work quickly and stay on task, you should be able to make a main dish, side dish, and dessert in 30 minutes.  The first meal I tried was not what I would call a success.... it was Mushroom Risotto with a side salad and a Lemon Raspberry cheesecake.  I skipped out on the dessert (because we had so many Christmas treats still lingering around the house), so I just made the risotto and salad.  It took at least 45 minutes, and the risotto was not as wonderful as I had hoped it would be (although my husband swears it was delicious.)  I think if I read the directions more carefully next time and do more of the prep work ahead of time (instead of in between steps, like Jamie does), it will be much quicker and less chaotic.  (Perhaps making risotto, which requires almost constant attention, wasn't the best meal to start out with!)

Anyway, on his Food Network show this weekend, I saw him prepare one of the meals that is in the new cookbook.  It was helpful to see him go through the motions, so I decided to give it a whirl.  The recipe is for Piri Piri Chicken, a side salad, and Portuguese tarts for dessert.  Turns out we are having friends over for supper tonight and I didn't feel like experimenting with a new main dish recipe when guests are here, so I just made the tarts for dessert and we're ordering pizza for supper!  Tomorrow night I will tackle the Piri Piri Chicken and salad.  Here's the tart recipe though, which is super easy to make!

PORTUGUESE TARTS
1 square puff pastry, thawed & rolled out into an 8" square
approx. 1 tbsp. cinnamon
1/2 c. whipping cream
1 egg
1 tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
zest of 1 orange
1/4 c. sugar
juice of 1 orange

Sprinkle puff pastry with cinnamon, then roll up like a jelly roll.  Cut into 8 equal pieces (Jamie only made 6, but I had enough for 8.)  Turn them on their side (so you can see the pinwheel design) and squash them down.  Use a rolling pin to flatten them out and then lay them in a muffin a tin so that they make tart shells.  Bake at 400 F for 8-10 minutes.  Remove from oven and use a spoon to push the dough up against the sides of the muffin tin so that you create a space for the custard.  To make the custard, whisk together whipping cream, egg, 1 tbsp. sugar, vanilla, and orange zest.  Fill the tart shells and put them back in the oven for 8-10 minutes.  They should still be jiggly when they come out.  While they are baking, heat 1/4 c. sugar and the orange juice in a saucepan over high heat to make a caramel (the sugar will boil and eventually turn a golden brown).  Pour caramel sauce over the tarts and let them set.

Mmmm.... kind of like a cinnamon bun and a crème brûlée in one little bite!

I wasn't sure how these would taste, so I had to sample one before our guests get here.  Umm, they are delicious!  Wish I would have doubled the batch!