Dessert Diva Danette Randall joins Gayle Guyardo in the Bloom kitchen with  banging recipe for entertaining this 4th of July.

FIRECRACKER FRUIT TART

3/4 cup unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup powdered sugar

Pinch salt

8 ounces cream cheese (room temp)

1/2 cup powdered sugar

¼ tsp almond extract

2 tbls heavy cream ( can substitute milk)

1 cup blueberries

1 cup strawberries (stems cut off, and cut in half)

Skewers for a few of the berries

Lightly grease a 9 inch tart pan with nonstick cooking spray

In medium bowl, combine the butter, flour, and ½ cup powdered sugar, use a pastry cutter, 2 forks (or food processor) and combine ingredients until well blended and butter is in little pieces, bring together to form a ball. Press dough ball evenly, and slightly up the sides of your prepared tart pan. Put in freezer, for 20-25 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 350-

Bake for 15-20 minutes, until starting to turn golden brown. Take out, and let cool completely.

When ready to serve, make the filling. In medium bowl, combine cream cheese, and powdered sugar, stir until smooth and creamy. Add in almond extract, and  heavy cream, mix well. I do about 3-4 minutes by hand until starting to thicken.

Spread evenly over cooled tart crust. Arrange berries over filling. Take a few skewers and load a few berries on them, then stick in tart. I do 3-5. You can stick sparklers or red, white and blue candles in too, for a fun, festive presentation. Dust with powdered sugar if desired. ENJOY!

NOTE- You can also use a rectangle tart pan, like I did if you desire, this recipe works for round or rectangle. You can switch up the berries to what you like. If you want your berries to shine, just take a little apricot or raspberry jam, add a splash of water, microwave for 10-20 seconds, stir and brush over top of the fruit. Check your crust when baking, it may take a few minutes longer or shorter depending on your oven. You want it be a light golden brown.

Bloom airs in 40 more markets across the country, with a reach of approximately 36 million households, and in Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands and Madison, WI.

You can watch Bloom in the Tampa Bay Market weekdays at Noon on WTTA: Spectrum 1006; Frontier 514; DirecTV 38; Dish 38; Comcast 43, and look for Bloom early mornings on WFLA News Channel 8.

Bloom also streams on Flixx.net.