As December comes to a close, I started looking back at all the things I made this year and asked, what was my favorite? Scrolling through my Instagram feed, one pic instantly jumped out, Strawberry-Basil Cream Tarts. I remember how happy it made me feel to eat one and how good it was, SO good I didn’t want to stop eating. Luckily they’re individual-sized. Knowing me, I would have tried to eat a whole 9″ tart.  I hope you find these tarts just as satisfying.

I can’t take care of plants so I opted out of buying a real wreath this Christmas, however a baked one, that I can do. For this babka wreath, I did a chocolate and orange pairing, perfect for the holidays. The bright orange flavor is incorporated in the dough in juice and zest forms. Then lovely ribbons of chocolate are woven in.

Typically when there is a recipe I like, it gets filed into the “must-make” folder and I’d forget I put it there. Not with this one. After seeing the Cinnamon-Swirl Apple Slab Pie in the Martha Stewart November issue, I knew Sunday would be pie day in my PJs. I told my friends I was busy. Apology was given in the form of homemade pie.

If you’ve seen my slab pie assembly how-to video, I made it in a jelly roll pan as stated in the recipe. For round 2, I did it in a standard 9″ pie pan. I love slab pies but thought a round pie would be pretty given the swirl shapes were also circular.

I’ll admit, pairing chocolate and fruit is not my favorite thing but this tart brings back memories of my teen years, when my sister I made this for my dad’s birthday. We made it a little differently back then. We used a traditional sablee crust, the ganache was filled to the very top and the surface was covered entirely with raspberries. How incredibly decadent! It makes me laugh.

I was having an Italian-themed potluck at work and when thinking about dessert, cannoli were the first thing that came to mind. I wasn’t up for frying shells so I decided to tarts instead. They were perfect for transporting. I simply brought the baked shells and a piping bag full of filling and assembled on site. So easy.