Berries 'N Stars

I love beautiful gourmet foods, however, I do not always have to time to spend in the kitchen creating difficult time consuming recipes. When I found this sweet treat, not only was it beautiful, it was time efficient to create. It is always a favorite when I take it events.

Puff pastry is so simple to work with, yet it looks like it took hours to create and prepare. Any brand of puff pastry will do fine for this recipe. Cooking on a baking stone definitely makes a difference as the stone conducts heat much more efficiently than a metal cookie sheet. It is also important to make sure it is completely thawed, as it will otherwise cook unevenly. Over-cooked puff pastry gets tough and chewy.

Even though there are a lot of steps to assemble this dessert, it is an easy recipe to follow. None of the steps are difficult, they are just detailed in the order in which things are assembled to create a piece of art that will be tough for your guests to cut into, but they will be so glad when they taste the light sweetness of the pastry and fruit.

Ingredients

• 1 Package (17.25 ounces) frozen sheet puff pastry, thawed
• 1 Teaspoon sugar
• 2 Lemons
• 1 Can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
• 1 Container (8 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed
• 2 Pints strawberries, sliced
• 1 Pint blueberries
• Grated chocolate

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Roll out one sheet of puff pastry into 13 x 10 rectangle (use baking stone or cookie sheet).
3. Roll out second sheet of pastry to 13 x 10 rectangle.
4. Cut four 1-inch thick strips lengthwise from second sheet using a sharp knife or pizza cutter.
5. Reserve remaining dough.
6. Brush edges of pastry on stone with water.
7. Lay strips of pastry over outside edges making an outer rim.
8. Trim off any excess dough.
9. Prick entire bottom of pastry with a fork.
10. Back 15 minutes or until golden brown. Note, center may puff up, but will flatten as it cools.
11. Cut star shapes out of remaining dough with a star shaped cookie cutter.
12. Sprinkle with sugar.
13. Bake for 12 minutes on baking stone or cookie sheet.
14. While the stars bake, zest both lemons, then juice.
15. Combine zest, juice and condensed milk in a bowl; mix with a whisk.
16. Fold in 1 cup whipped topping.
17. Fill cooked pastry shell with filling.
18. Combine sliced strawberries and blueberries, place of filling.
19. Top berries with pastry stars.
20. Decorate with remaining whipped topping.

Yields 16-24 servings.