It’s Pi Day tomorrow, so naturally there has to be pie right? Right. Glad we’re all on the same page here.

So based on our local weather forecast, I’m thinking we’re done with snow around here. A month ago I might have been sad to see Winter go because I’ve missed having a white Winter season for so many years, but in case you haven’t noticed, I’m basically over Winter and totally ready for Spring. Yes, mid-March is the perfect time for Spring to truly arrive. This is such a random thing to notice unless you’re me, but when I got in the car yesterday and the seat was warmed from the sun rather than its usual freezing cold temp that always makes me cringe.

In other recent news, my berry addiction seems to be reaching an all-time high in anticipation of the season changing. I’m so addicted that I’m actually pretty sure I could eat my weight in fresh berries. What’s your superpower?

These cute little tarts were a spur of the moment idea I had a few days ago. In fact, the cream was something I’d made with a different recipe in mind, and I had been planning to bake a typical pastry pie with a cooked berry filling. But then I thought about how delicious the vanilla custard would be with some fresh berries and remembered that pi day was so close.

Between Springtime coming, Easter, St. Patrick’s Day, and all the other random events around March I always seem to miss Pi Day and I wanted to be sure not to let that happen again this year. That’s when I realized these little pies/tarts just needed to happen.

It’s just a personal preference, but I’ll always choose fresh berries over cooked ones even though I love them cooked also. Don’t worry, if you’re a bigger fan of cooked berries I’ve got all Spring and Summer to share plenty of those kind of recipes, but today’s recipe is all about celebrating the fresh ones.

Yeah, so these simple little tarts are super basic. We’re talking graham cracker crust, meets simple vanilla pudding, meets fresh berries, super easy-peasy! You can also make it as a larger pie in a 9-inch pie pan, but you guys know I’m always a sucker for the miniature versions of things, so I chose the more individual size. I used some of the dishes from this Pyrex set, but any ramekins or pie dishes will do. Oh, and this didn’t make it into the photos but a squirt of whipped cream on top is the perfect way to finish these off.

Easy Vanilla Cream Custard Berry Tarts

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Yield: 6-8 servings

Celebrate all the feels of warmth and sunshine with these simple little vanilla cream tarts with plenty of fresh berries.

Ingredients

Graham Cracker Crust:

1 3/4 cups crushed graham crackers
1/3 cup sugar
6 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract.

Vanilla Cream Custard:

2 1/2 cups milk
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter
fresh berries (or fruits)
whipped cream (optional)

Instructions

Graham Cracker Crust:

Preheat oven to 350 defrees F (180 C) and grease a 9-inch or 4 (2-cup) ramekins (I used the 2, 2-cup, and 1, 4-cup, rounds from this Pyrex set). Combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, vanilla, and melted butter in a medium mixing bowl and stri to combine. Press into your greased pan(s) and use the bottom of a cup or just your fingers to shape it about 1 inch up the sides. Bake for 10-12 minutes until beginning to brown. Remove and set aside to cool completely while you prepare the custard.

Vanilla Cream Custard:

Heat milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat until very warm but not boiling. While milk is warming whisk eggs and sugar until light and frothy in a medium bowl.
Slowly pour warm milk into eggs while stirring to temper. Whisk in salt and cornstarch until smooth, then pour into saucepan. Return to heat and stir constantly until the first bubble splutters and pops or until thickened. Remove from heat immediately and stir in butter. Pour through a fine mesh strainer into a medium bowl to catch any lumps that may have formed and allow to cool completely. Add vanilla and pour the mixture into prepared crusts.
Chill the tarts in the fridge for about an hour then serve them topped with fresh berries, fruit, and maybe some whipped cream!

For more great food ideas, please do not forget to look at my other recent food posts

1. Midnight Mocha Chocolate Chunk Brownies
2. Chocolate Spelt Greek Yogurt Waffles + Maple Nut Butter Syrup
3. Moroccan Ribboned Carrot Raddicchio Salad
4. Heirloom Tomato Marinara Meatballs & Spaghetti Squash
5. Chocolate Oats & Honey Cut-Out Cookies (GF+Vegan)
6. Miso Mahi-Mahi Brown Rice Pad Thai Noodles
7. Chile Lime Veggie Burrito Bowls
8. Chocolate Covered Almond Butter Eggs - FOOD PHOTO SHOOT
9. Traditional Greek Lamb Gyros + Tzatziki Sauce
10. Mint Chocolate Chip Muddy Buddies

ALL CONTENT IS MINE AND ORIGINAL! All of these food photos were taken with my Nikon D750 and my favorite Lens, the Nikon AF-S FX NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8G. You can find out more in my INTRO POST.

And, by the way, to all the minnows out there, my intro post did a huge $0.21. The key to success on Steemit is to be consistent and persistent. Click on the link below for some great tutorials on how you can also succeed on the steem blockchain:

Master Toolkit: Steemit Resource Guide Illustrated by @sndbox

Also, a huge shoutout to @rigaronib for designing my logo!

Do you want to learn more about me? Click here to see a recent @wadepaterson interview with me - 20 questions with @gringalicious

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