Sour cherry tart with almond cream & a french cookie crust

A sour cherry tart with almond cream on a table.

5 from 8 votes

Sour cherry tart with almond cream & a french cookie crust

This tart highlights the sour cherry flavor with a sweet-tart filling, a slightly sweet cookie crust, and a hint of almond with a creamy custard layer.

Prep Time1

Cook Time40

Total Time1 20

Servings: pieces

Calories: 435kcal

Equipment

9" tart pan or pie plate

Ingredients

Tart crust

8 tablespoon butter slightly softened
½ cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg yolk large
5 oz all-purpose flour (1 full cup)

Cherry filling

6 cups tart sour cherries about 2 lbs
½ cup water
½ cup granulated sugar or more to taste
2-4 tablespoon cornstarch
¼ teaspoon almond extract

Almond cream

¾ cup heavy cream
2 teaspoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon butter
½ teaspoon almond extract

Garnish - optional

2 tablespoon sliced almonds optional

Instructions

Tart crust

Start the crust ahead of time, as it needs 30 minutes to chill. (Can easily be doubled for two crusts).
Beat butter and sugar together in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment (or use a hand mixer). Beat on low so the powdered sugar doesn't spray everywhere. Once combined, increase speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes). The consistency will be like a light whipped frosting, rather than a heavy butter base.
Add extract & egg: add the vanilla extract and egg yolk, beat until incorporated. (If doubling recipe, add yolks one at a time, beating between each one).
Add flour: scrape down sides of the bowl, then add flour and mix on low until fully incorporated.
Form into disc & refrigerate: scrape the dough onto a light floured surface, and form it into a smooth ball. Squish it down into a disc and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill for about 30 minutes. It can also be made ahead and left in the fridge for a couple days, but it will need to warm up on your counter for a bit to become pliable enough to roll.
Roll & prepare to bake: preheat oven to 350℉. Remove the dough from the fridge and place on a lightly floured surface. Roll it out to be 1 inch larger than your pie or tart pan. I used a 9" tart pan, but an 8" would still hold all of the filling.
If the dough is too stiff and cracks when you roll it out, work it with your hands for a minute until it is just pliable enough. Place in the tart pan, going up the sides. Poke holes in the bottom with a fork. Place in fridge until ready to bake.
Bake: bake for 15-20 minutes, until the crust starts to turn golden. We are looking to partially bake it, not fully baked. If it puffs up, you can push it down. It will still be pliable enough to take a little bit of reshaping! Note: there is NO filling in at this point.

Cherry filling

Pit cherries: pitting the cherries will probably take 15 minutes. You can place them in a saucepan as they are pitted.
Combine cornstarch and water: mix half of the water with just 2 Tbsp cornstarch and mix into a slurry. This helps create a non-clumping mixture.
Cook filling: add cherries, cornstarch mixture, remaining water, and sugar into a saucepan. Bring to a boil, the reduce heat to low, stirring frequently. Cook for about 5-10 minutes until it is clear (not opaque from the cornstarch), and the consistency you want. It won't get much thicker, if at all, once baked.
TIP!! Too thin? Add more cornstarch after premixing it with a little water. Too thick? Add water.
Cool & add almond extract: allow to cool until it is warm (we just don't want it piping hot here). Add almond extract after it has cooled a little (heat will evaporate the alcohol and its almond flavoring).
TIP!! Can be made ahead of time and refrigerated.

Almond cream

Combine cornstarch & cream: mix the cornstarch with about 1 tablespoon of the heavy cream. This creates a slurry to prevent clumping.
Cook in saucepan: combine the heavy cream, cornstarch mixture, and sugar in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently. Cook until it thickens (it will be bubbling a little). It should be the consistency of a runny pudding or watery yogurt.
Remove from heat and stir in butter. Allow to slightly cool then add in the almond extract. Can be refrigerated if made ahead of time - just press plastic wrap to the surface to prevent a film from forming.

Assemble & bake!

Preheat the over to 350℉.
Assemble - add almond cream: once the oven is preheated, pour the almond cream into the par-baked tart crust, which is still in the tart pan. Spread around evenly. The crust can be warm from the oven or cooled, both work (it just might cook a little longer if it has cooled).
Add cherry filling: add the pie filling by the large spoonful, dotting around the tart until it is full. Avoid pouring the filling into the center all at once - this will push the almond cream away from the middle and up the sides (not what we are going for!).
Optional: add sliced almonds to the edge of the tart to make it pretty.
Bake for 20-30 minutes, until the tart crust is golden. The optional almond garnish should brown up nicely without burning (don't raise the temperature or the nuts might burn). The almond cream will set nicely and the filling won't change consistency.
Refrigerate if not eating it right away (the cream doesn't have enough added sugar to allow it to be safely stored on the counter).

Notes

Make ahead: everything can be made a couple days in advance and refrigerated. Allow the tart dough to warm up on the counter until it is pliable enough to roll out. The almond cream and cherry filling can be added when cold.

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