Southern and French Fusion: Mini Tomato Tarts

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Since moving to Charleston, I've discovered the deliciousness that is Southern Lowcountry cuisine, and even had some fun making it. I've tried my hand at she crab soup; my macaroni and cheese is off the charts; and you haven't lived until you've tried shrimp toast.  With its Southern and French influences (just like in the city of Charleston), it seemed only fitting to make my next recipe a tomato tart!  Making them the perfect appetizer for holiday entertaining, I made my tomato tarts miniature.

With winter upon us, I decided to make my recipe with ingredients I can find all year round at my local Walmart that will still give a fresh taste: Hunt's canned tomatoes paired with fresh garlic and herbs.  These are fantastic ways to help save time with stress-free recipe creation this holiday season.

Ingredients:
- 1 can Hunt's Whole Peeled Plum Tomatoes
- 2 gloves minced garlic
- fresh-cracked pepper
- fresh thyme
- PAM cooking spray
- puff pastry sheet
- brie cheese
- one egg

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. In a saucepan, combine the can of tomatoes (sauce and whole tomatoes), minced garlic, cracked pepper, and the stripped leaves from 3 thyme sprigs.
3. Cook the tomato mixture over medium heat for about 20 minutes.
4. While the tomatoes are cooking, assemble the tart shells by rolling out a puff pastry sheet to double its original size or 1-2 mm thick.
5. Completely spray a mini muffin pan with PAM to keep any part of the tartlets from sticking.
6. Use a mason jar lid to cut circles out of the puff pastry, and lay the circles into the mini muffin pan, pushing them into the bottom of each cup.
7. By this point, the tomatoes should be cooked.  Using a potato masher, crush the tomatoes in the sauce until no large pieces remain.
8. Strain out all of the pieces of tomato so that little liquid remains, and spoon about a teaspoon of tomato into each puff pastry cup.
9. Once all tomato cups are filled, top each of them with a small slice of brie and a thyme leaf.
10. Finish off the tarts by brushing any exposed puff pastry with whisked egg to help them brown up in the oven.
11. Bake the tartlets in the oven for about 8 minutes.  After they're done, take them out in the oven and leave them in the pan for an additional 5 minutes to make sure they keep their shape before serving!

Using ingredients like Hunt's and PAM from ConAgra, hosting a Christmas party this year can be simple and delicious.  Find more easy recipes that are perfect for holiday entertaining by visiting Yes You Can Recipes!

• What is your favorite party appetizer?
• Are you hosting a holiday get-together this year?

Blackberry Spice Holiday Punch

Hi, friends! Popping in super quickly today to share a simple recipe for my new favorite holiday drink and link up with everyone at the bottom of this post.  We made this punch for Thanksgiving, and it was a total hit.  It would be fantastic to make ahead, and add in some diced pear, apple, orange, and blackberries for extra fun.  I actually learned of the recipe this fall at a local market that was selling Sallie's Greatest syrups and jams.  They're a South Carolina company but ship all over!

All you need to do is mix together the ingredients in a pitcher, stir, and serve over ice:
1/2 cup blackberry spice and sage simple syrup
3 cups Cran-Apple juice
3 cups apple cider
1 1/2 cups vodka

Weekend + Christmas Tag

Hope everyone had a great weekend!  Ours was nice and relaxing with time spent decorating our tree, cooking some new Pinterest favorites, and watching football (Go Panthers and Eagles!!).  The weather here is fantastic right now, and I am loving getting to wear my favorite blouses and boots.

earrings /// top (c/o Haute Hanger) /// necklace /// pants /// boots (similar)

Since there are a lot of new faces around here, I thought it'd also be fun to share a little about myself, specifically related to my favorite upcoming holiday: Christmas!  I created this Christmas tag to share with y'all:

What is your favorite Christmas tradition? Playing cards with friends between church services on Christmas Eve
Where do you spend Christmas? We are so excited to be up in New England this Christmas with both of our sides of the family. 
What is your favorite Christmas song? Christmas Is All Around and the whole Love, Actually soundtrack
Do you decorate before or after Thanksgiving? Black Friday is always Christmas tree day!
Tinsel or garland? I really like Mike's family's tradition of popcorn and cranberry garland.
Who are you most excited to see this Christmas season? Santa?? :)
Do you own an ugly Christmas sweater? No, but I do have a battery-powered light pack to turn myself into a Christmas tree for parties!
What is one Christmas food you cannot live without? My mom's cookie tray with like 10 types of cookies
Peppermint or gingerbread? Gingerbread
Have you ever tried a fruit cake? Nope
What is one thing you asked for this Christmas? Cam Newton jersey
If you could be any Christmas movie character, who would you be? Sally Brown

I tag Macy, Erika, Rebecca Jo, Christina, and all of my blogger friends to participate!