I go bananas for brownies, wild over pie, and I’ll be a dedicated cookie fan forever. But when I’m brainstorming a dessert to tie the bow on the perfect summer gathering, I want to surprise, delight, and leave my guests in awe. Enter: the tastiest recipe for delicate and delicious raspberry mascarpone tartlets.

If you’re looking for a cookbook to add to your ever-growing library, we can’t recommend our new fave enough. A Year at Catbird Cottage: Recipes for a Nourished Life is Melina Hammer’s ode to slow living and thoughtful meals, and as she knows well, no summer meal is complete without a fruit-forward dessert. This recipe for Black Raspberry–Bourbon Mascarpone Tartlets is our sweet of choice.

Before you dive into the recipe below, a word to the wise: don’t let the long instructions list intimidate you. These black raspberry mascarpone tartlets are simpler (and more foolproof!) than they may seem. And while we love hanging out in the kitchen all Saturday long to take on our current baking project of choice, components of these confectionary cuties can be made up to three days in advance. So whip and chill your mascarpone, assemble your pastry, and make your pistachio praline the day of. Your easy breezy treats await!

Reprinted with permission from A Year at Catbird Cottage: Recipes for a Nourished Life. Copyright © 2022 by Melina Hammer. Photography Copyright © 2022 by Melina Hammer. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House.”