Cherry Crumb Tart

A darker “French baked” tart

Cherry has been on my mind since that weekend in Washington DC when we set out to see cherry blossoms. The weather was still frigid at the end of April and early May; there were only a few cherry trees in bloom. There might have been only five, if I remember that correctly. The good news was there was a location map to find them.

We’d have to wait until next spring to see the splendid blossoming display of cherry trees. But cherries, the red Bing cherries and the yellow Rainiers, are in season. No need for waiting to enjoy the seasonal bounty of fresh cherries.

Tuesdays with Dorie (TWD) is baking cherry crumb tart from Dorie Greenspan’s Baking Chez Moi this week. Sounds great! Looks like a good recipe to bake along, except one thing…

Taking a second look and reading the fine print in the recipe reveals some daunting and time consuming tasks, necessary for the tart to come together before baking begins. These crucial parts are: 1) making the sweet cookie dough for the tart crust, 2) making the frangipane filling to spread on the bottom of the tart, 3) making the streusel by hand, and 4) pitting one pound of cherries. They can be done separately and ahead of time. That’s the good part. However, there are the time schedules to contend with. The tart dough needs to be refrigerated for at least two hours (or freeze for one hour). Next, the filling needs at least one hour in the refrigerator. Overall, you are not just making a tart. You’re making time commitment before you can set your sight on the finish line. I see why I haven’t been making tarts.

Honestly, that is not the only reason. There are other hurdles I have to overcome. Making the tart crust has been my nemesis; it always seems to find a way to foil my best-laid plan. It gives me pauses before I make another crust. Too crumbly, too uneven, too stiff, you name it… As you can tell, my noisy head had been busy going over these nitty gritty issues.

Decision time. To make the tart or not? To confront or to retreat? I chose the former, but not without the constant questioning and a lot of second-guessing inside my head.

Streusel made with 50% whole wheat flour

I mostly followed Dorie’s recipe as written. I made one change in the streusel. Instead of using all-purpose flour, I used 50% all-purpose and 50% whole-wheat flour. I also used a rectangular pan, as shown in the picture above, instead of a 9-inch square or round tart pan. I let out a sigh of relief when the tart came out of the oven and out of tart pan. I had a big smile on my face when I took a bite of the tart. I like the tart. It is very rich and very sweet. Perhaps, a bit too rich for my blood and arteries.

Can’t give out details of the recipe. (That’s what TWD participants have agreed to abide.) See what others at TWD think about this tart, click here. Some facts about the major ingredients: I spotted 2 1/2 sticks plus 1 tablespoon of butter, and 1 1/2 cups of sugar relative to 3 cups of flour going into the whole tart (including the tart dough, streusel and filling). But who’s counting?

There is always the option to just simply eat a bowl of freshly pitted cherries. And sprinkle some short bread cookies and/or a scoop of ice cream on top and call it a day!

Eat a bowl of cherries

Tart in a rectangular pan