Cherry Almond Tarts Recipes

CHERRY-ALMOND STREUSEL TART

Steps:

• Press pastry onto the bottom and up the sides of an ungreased 9-in. fluted tart pan with removable bottom; trim edges., In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, cornstarch and salt. Stir in cherries; bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Cook and stir for 1-2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from the heat; stir in extract. Pour into crust., For topping, combine the oats, flour, brown sugar and almonds. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over filling. Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes or until topping is golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

CHERRY FRANGIPANE TART

Steps:

• Make the tart dough: Combine flour, sugar and salt in a mixing bowl. Work in butter thoroughly. Stir in egg yolk mixture and knead briefly until dough is smooth, then form into a flat disk.
• Roll dough to a large circle and lay it in a 10-inch/23-centimeter fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. Press in well (patch any cracks with extra dough). Refrigerate or freeze for 1 hour.
• Heat oven to 425 degrees. Blind bake tart shell until lightly browned, about 15 minutes. (You do not need to cover the shell or use pie weights.)
• Meanwhile, make the filling: Put almonds, flour and sugar in work bowl of food processor and grind to a rough powder. Add butter and pulse until well incorporated. Add eggs and almond extract and process until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. (Alternatively, use ground almonds and make batter with a mixer instead.)
• Pour almond batter into prebaked shell and smooth with a spatula. Press cherries into batter in a single layer. Sprinkle with a handful of sliced almonds. Lower oven temperature to 375 degrees and bake until golden, 30 to 40 minutes. (An inserted skewer should come out clean.) Cool on a rack and remove outer rim of tart pan. Place tart on a serving dish and dust with confectioners' sugar.

CHERRY & ALMOND TARTS

Steps:

• Very thinly roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface. Stamp out 12 x 9cm circles with a fluted cutter, if you have one, and use to line a bun tin. Spread 1 rounded tsp of the cherry jam in the bottom of each tart.
• Whizz the cake to crumbs in a food processor, then tip into a mixing bowl and add the flour, butter, ground almonds, caster sugar, eggs and almond extract. Beat together until smooth, then divide between the tarts, spreading a little with the back of a teaspoon to cover the jam. Scatter over the flaked almonds and openfreeze for 2 hrs, then wrap well in cling film and freeze for up to 2 months.
• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4 with a baking sheet in it. Unwrap the tarts from the freezer and loosely top with a sheet of foil. Bake on the heated baking sheet for 30-40 mins until golden, removing the foil halfway. Cool the tarts a little, then add a splash of water into the icing sugar to make a runny icing. Drizzle over the tarts and leave to set.
• Very thinly roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface. Stamp out 12 x 9cm circles with a fluted cutter, if you have one, and use to line a bun tin. Spread 1 rounded tsp of the cherry jam in the bottom of each tart.
• Whizz the cake to crumbs in a food processor, then tip into a mixing bowl and add the flour, butter, ground almonds, caster sugar, eggs and almond extract. Beat together until smooth, then divide between the tarts, spreading a little with the back of a teaspoon to cover the jam. Scatter over the flaked almonds and openfreeze for 2 hrs, then wrap well in cling film and freeze for up to 2 months.
• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4 with a baking sheet in it. Unwrap the tarts from the freezer and loosely top with a sheet of foil. Bake on the heated baking sheet for 30-40 mins until golden, removing the foil halfway. Cool the tarts a little, then add a splash of water into the icing sugar to make a runny icing. Drizzle over the tarts and leave to set.

CHERRY, ALMOND & LEMON MASCARPONE TART

Steps:

• Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface to just thinner than a £1 coin. Use to line a 22cm loose-bottomed tart tin, leaving an overhang on the sides. Leave to chill in the fridge on a baking sheet. To make the frangipane, whizz everything together in a food processor until combined.
• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and line the tart case with baking parchment and beans. Bake for 20 mins, then remove parchment and beans, lightly prick the base with a fork and continue to bake for 10 mins until pale biscuity. Spread the frangipane over the base and return to the oven for 15 mins until cooked. Remove from the oven, trim the sides of the pastry and leave to cool completely.
• Beat the mascarpone with the lemon zest and juice and the icing sugar. Spread over the frangipane. Arrange the cherries on top, dust heavily with icing sugar, remove from the tin and serve.

AMARENA CHERRY & ALMOND TART

Steps:

• Mix together the butter, sugar, flour, a pinch of salt and the egg in a food processor to make a dough, then wrap and leave to rest in the fridge for 30 mins. The dough should be cold but still easy to work with by the time you roll it out.
• Meanwhile, make the frangipane filling. Melt the butter in a pan over a low heat, then set aside to cool slightly. Beat the sugar with the eggs and lemon zest in a bowl until creamy. Pour in the melted butter while continuing to beat, then add the ground almonds (or almond flour) and fold into the mixture. Heat oven to 175C/155C fan/gas 3½.
• Line a buttered tart tin or ring mould (approximately 23cm) with the rolled-out pastry dough, then trim any overhanging edges. Spread the frangipane evenly into the tin and arrange the cherries on top with some of their syrup, so the top of the tart is covered in a thin layer.
• Put the tart in the oven and bake for about 40-45 mins until golden brown, puffed and firm to the touch. Leave to cool on a rack. Dust with some icing sugar, if you like, before serving in slices.