Fruity goodness...

Our friends the Montgomerys came over yesterday for our weekly Saturday game night & catch-up time. Yesterday was really gorgeous, and marked the first day of the season that the pool in our complex is open. So Dylan and I spent a little bit of time with our feet in the water (the pool is heated and was the PERFECT temperature!) before it became overrun with other residents. We also spent some time kicking around the soccer ball on the lawn outside of our building. It was a really fun afternoon.

Whichever of us hosts the day figures out and prepares dinner for everyone. So since they were coming up to our place to check out Wii Fit (which is a total blast...working out was never so fun!), Erich made chicken and cheese-filled tortellini with peas and bacon in a pesto alfredo sauce and I figured out dessert.

I took a trip to the local Thriftway to get some inspiration and found some really lovely, reasonably priced seasonal fruit and a premade Bavarian pound "tart" cake. So, I thought I'd try my hand at a mixed-fruit tart.

I started by taking the cake and adding a thin layer of apricot preserves as a base for the fruit. (In the future, I would probably take some of the reserved juices from the strawberries and saturate the cake since it ended up being a little on the dry side.) I then added a layer of Fat-Free whipped cream (note to self: be sure to take out of freezer at least 30 minutes before trying to assemble). Next was the fun part...arranging the variety of fruits in a pretty fashion. No real rhyme or reason. I used all fresh fruit; strawberries, blueberries, kiwi, plums, seedless green grapes, and raspberries.

To add a nice shine and a little bit of sweetness, I combined 1/4 cup of the apricot preserves with 2 tablespoons of water in a small saucepan and brought it to a boil, stirring constantly, until the preserves are melted. Then I brushed the top of the tart with the sauce giving it a lovely glisten.

All in all, it was the perfect ending to the first of many beautiful summer days.

What kinds of desserts are you all falling in love with?