A Dessert Worth the Fuss

Generally we don’t make such a fuss over any dessert, but the cherry season is so unreasonably short, we always feel we have to make the most of it. A handful of recipes—muffins, upside-down cake and tart—are ready to go at the first sign of cherries.

We remember bringing a cherry tart, still warm from the oven, and a tub of vanilla ice cream to a Fourth of July potluck supper. Grownups hurried through their meal just to get in line for dessert. Ordinarily well-mannered people were seen licking their plates. And when the pan was empty, one man went back to the table with his spoon to scoop up the last of the juices. A fresh cherry tart can do that to people.

If you have ever made a fresh cherry tart, you know the most important tool in your kitchen arsenal is a cherry pitter. In a pinch, a paring knife or even a paper clip will do, but the best thing is a cherry pitter. With one quick snap of the plunger, the pit pops out. The only downside to pitting cherries, if you can call it that, is by the time you’ve punched out the last pit, the kitchen looks like it’s been under attack. Cherry juice is everywhere. It stains the sink, runs down your arms and stays under your nails long after the tart is gone.

Even so, it’s a small price to pay for the delicious pleasure that comes from eating a homemade cherry tart.

Fresh Cherry Tart

Photo by Mark Boughton; styling by Teresa Blackburn

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Refrigerating the pastry dough before rolling it helps prevent it from shrinking as it bakes.

Ingredients

Pastry:
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup cold butter, cut into small pieces
2 teaspoons grated orange rind

Cherry Filling:
4 cups pitted cherries (about 1 1⁄3 pounds)
2⁄3 cup granulated sugar
1½ tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon confectioners’ sugar

Instructions

1. To prepare the pastry, combine flour, sugar and salt in a processor; pulse to combine. Add butter and orange rind; pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add 1 to 2 teaspoons of ice water; pulse until dough clumps together. Shape into a 4-inch disc; wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate about 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 375F.
3. Roll pastry into a 15-inch circle on a floured surface. Place in a 10-inch tart pan with removable bottom, letting pastry hang over the edge.
4. To prepare the filling, combine cherries, granulated sugar and cornstarch. Spoon into pastry; fold pastry edges over filling.
5. Bake 40 minutes or until crust is golden and filling is bubbly. Cool on wire rack. Sift confectioners’ sugar over pastry before serving. Serves 8.

Recipe by Jean Kressy," Relish America's Harvest," July 2007.

Nutritional Information

Per serving: 270 calories, 11g fat, 3g prot., 42g carbs., 2g fiber, 75mg sodium.

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