For me, I really don’t think there can ever be too much of the good things in life. Whether that be the grapes growing on the vines in our yard or the incredible lady friends I have met through blogging. I just can’t get enough of either these days.

 

When my girls Gina of So Let’s Hangout and Emily of The Pig and Quill invited me to be a part of #soletspigout, their virtual summer potluck – I just couldn’t say no! I mean what I would really love is to hang out with all of these fantastic bloggers in person, in the real life – stuffing our faces with food and chatting it up about blogging and all the weird things we do. But, I suppose this is the next best thing – virtual food with virtual friends. All of the fun, none of the calories?

In honor of #soletshangout, all week long these two adorably charming, witty gals have been serving up some tantalizing dishes for their weeklong fest! They’ve shared Sticky BBQ Korean Chicken Wings, Fizzy Herbed Pineapple Limeade, Grilled Thai Beef Salad With Sesame Lime Vinaigrette, Sinless Superfood Devil’s Food Donuts and Grain-Free Stone Fruit Cobbler with Lime Coconut Cream. Phew – are you drooling, yet?

Oh and to see all the fun surround this potluck, be sure to check out the hashtag #soletspigout on Instagram.

When it came time to decide what I would be bringing to this virtual get-together today, with 20+ other food-obsessed bloggers, I knew immediately I would have to bring something that included grapes! If you haven’t heard me mention already here on the blog or on my social media, I am literally overwhelmed by the amount of fresh grapes we are getting from the grape vines we have here at our house.

I have been picking them by the 5 and 10 pound bags. No joke. I’ve been forced to get super creative with all of these grapes, which I have actually been loving and I hope you have been, too! (Did you see this Red Grape and Goat Cheese Salad with Walnuts or the Bacon Roasted Grape Salad?) That said, I have also taken to literally giving them away by the several-pound bags, to anyone that will take them. So, please be warned, if you come within even 1 mile of our home or if you invite me to your place, I will send you away with grapes. Lots of them.

If this potluck were happening in real life, I can say in all honesty, that I’d be going Great Grape Ape on the whole party! Not only would I be bringing these beautiful savory mini-tarts highlighting the yummy fresh grapes, but I would also be toting a large bowl of fresh grapes for munching on, plus a few bags to giveaway to whomever would give them a good home.

As I mentioned earlier this week, with this Bacon Roasted Grape Salad, one of the best things I have discovered to do with all of these grapes, has been to roast them. It really brings out their natural sweetness in the most incredible way. These savory tarts not only highlight the roasted grapes, but the flavorful creamy rosemary goat cheese filling is also a wonderful compliment to the slightly sweet roasted grapes. The tartness from the goat cheese, the rustic earthy flavor from the rosemary and the sharp bite of the fresh garlic – all make for the most wonderful savory treat.

These tarts would be great at any potluck or other get-together and could literally be served for any meal, breakfast brunch, lunch or dinner. They are nice as a side, perfect for a starter but hearty enough for a main.  I can say this all from experience since I have basically eaten my way through all of them at different meals throughout this past week. Each of the mini tarts are actually enough to serve 2, if you were serving these with other foods, but you can also make one very large tart made with a 9 or 10-inch tart pan to make at least 8 servings or you could make 12 super mini tarts with a muffin tin, as I do here.

I wanna hear from all of you, if you were joining us at this summer-inspired potluck party, what would you be bringing? Ready go!

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Roasted Grape and Rosemary Savory Goat Cheese Mini Tarts {Grain-Free}

makes 4 mini tarts 3-4″ in diameter, 1 large tart 9-10″ in diameter or 12 super-mini tarts made in a paper-lined muffin tin

Grain-free Tart Shells

• 2 cups blanched almond flour {almond meal would also work}
• 2 tablespoons flax seed meal
• 2 tablespoons tapioca or arrowroot starch
• 3 tablespoons coconut oil plus more for greasing the pans
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 egg, beaten

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

Lightly grease your tart pans with coconut oil and set aside. In a large bowl add all of the ingredients and mix well to combine. The dough will be quite crumbly, but will hold together when pressed or squeezed.

With your hands gather the dough and divide it evenly amongst the tart pans. Press the dough firmly and evenly into the tart pan, pressing it up the edges of the pan.

Place the tart pans on top of a baking sheet and bake 15-20 minutes or until just turning golden brown. If they start to brown a bit early, cover with foil.

Once done, remove from the oven and allow to cool. Bring the temperature of the oven up to 400ºF for the grapes.

Goat Cheese Filling

• 1 clove garlic
• 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary
• 8 ounces goat cheese
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• A few tablespoons of water
• Salt and pepper to taste

While the tart shells are cooling make the filling. In a high speed blender or in your food processor, add the garlic and the rosemary. Pulse several times to chop/mince. Then add the goat cheese, olive oil and lemon juice. Blend until smooth and creamy, adding as much water as necessary to keep it moving and to make it creamy, but make sure not to add more than 1/4 cup. Remove the tart shells from their pans and pale on a serving platter or baking sheet, pour the goat cheese filling equally amongst the completely cooled tart shells. Smooth the surface with a spatula, if necessary. Place the tart shells in the fridge to firm up while you roast the grapes.

Roasted Grapes

• 1 pound seedless red grapes
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 400°F

Arrange the bunches of grapes in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Toss with the olive oil and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Roast for 15-20 minutes, until the grapes begin to burst and the juice around them starts to thicken.
Once the grapes have cooled, and the goat cheese filling is firm, place the grapes on top of the tarts (remove from the stems to make eating easier), garnish with fresh rosemary and serve or chill until you are ready to serve.[/print_this]

NOTES:

To make vegan, simply skip the egg and add a small amount of water to the ground flaxseeds before adding them.

For the filling, instead of goat cheese, opt instead for a cashew cream. Soak 1 1/2 cups of raw cashews (covered in water) for at least 2 hours, preferably longer. Drain and rinse. Add the cashews, the juice from 1 fresh lemon and a pinch of sea salt to your food processor and process until smooth and creamy, a few minutes. Then add the remaining ingredients.

 

THE FULL LINE-UP OF #SOLETSPIGOUT POTLUCK DISHES:

 

DRINKS

The Pig & Quill – Fizzy Herbed Pineapple Limeade //  What’s Gaby Cooking – Strawberry Jalapeño Margarita // Cake Over Steak –Blueberry Mojitos // Aida Mollenkamp – Peach Melba Coconut Cream Soda

 

APPS & SNACKS

So Let’s Hangout – Grilled Korean Chicken Wings // Food Loves to Eat – Smoked Salmon Dip // A La Main – Almond Hummus & Crackers {GF}  // Naturally Ella –Grilled Peach and Halloumi Skewers //Paleo Coconut Lime Fruit Salad by Rubies & Radishes

 

SALADS & SIDES

So Let’s Hangout – Grilled Thai Beef Salad With Sesame Lime Vinaigrette // I Am A Food Blog – Banh Mi Fries // Beard & Bonnet – Grilled Watermelon and Halloumi Salad // Gluten Is My Bitch – Mexican Corn Off The Cob  // 80Twenty – Herby Wild Rice Salad with Roasted Cherries //

 

MAINS

Predominantly Paleo – Caramelized Onion Buffalo Meatballs  // Lexi’s Clean Kitchen – Thai Chicken Slaw // Earthy Feast – Chicken Fried Tofu Sliders with Spicy Peach Slaw // Fix Feast Flare – Norimaki Mochiko Chicken Bites + Quick Pickles //

DESSERTS

So Let’s Hangout – Stone Fruit Crumble with Coconut Cream // The Pig and Quill – Sinless Superfood Devil’s Food Donuts // Fix Feast Flair – Mini Matcha Butter Mochi with Adzuki Bean //  Live Simply – Peach & Rosemary Crisp //  Dunk & Crumble – Marionberry Pie // A Little Saffron – Peach and Plum Crisp // Wit & Vinegar – Pink Cloud Dessert  // The Sugar Hit – Toblerone Ice Cream Cake // Will Frolic For Food – S’meaches (S’mores and Peaches) // With Food + Love – Banana Cupcakes with Black Tea infused Sweet Cherry Frosting // Texanerin Baking – Grain-free Raspberry Coconut Cupcakes // EGD – Cider-poached Peaches with Whipped Ricotta