here it is – the quintessential DC dessert – the DC cherry bomb!
after many hours in the test kitchen, mimi and i came up with the cherry bomb. it perfectly captures the essence of dc – the pride of the city in the cherry blossom festival, the heightened anxiety that comes from living in an era of the Department of Homeland Security, and a taste that’s both sweet and tart, just like the many bitter young urban professionals who came here to change the world and are now miserable desk jockeys. plus, it’s easy enough for a workaholic to make during the lone hour of leisure time they have in a day.
here’s the recipe:
1 box of puff pastry
2 24-count mini cupcake tins
1 can of cherry pie filling
scant 1/4 cup of tapioca
1. Open the can of cherry pie filling and pour in a bowl. Mix in the tapioca and let it sit for a while.
2. Spray cupcake tins with nonstick cooking spray.
3. Let puff pastry come to room temperature, which takes about 20 minutes of thawing. Lay down some wax paper (or foil). Lightly dust it with flour, and then unroll pastry. Cut it into 1-inch squares, then press squares into cupcake tin indentations. Each square will make a little teensy basket.
4. Spoon a little bit of pie filling into each square.
5. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, or a little longer if you forget to preheat the oven like me.
6. Enjoy the taste explosion in your mouth.
These are really, really hard to mess up, they taste delicious, and they make your apartment smell great. Who cares if you don’t make the puff pastry by hand?
So help us spread the word – this IS the new dessert of DC!
