Boozy Cherry Walnut Tart Food

BOOZY CHERRY WALNUT TART

Steps:

• Make the crust: Mix flour, sugar and salt in a medium bowl. Pour butter over the dry ingredients and, using your hands, mix together until you've got a Play-Doh-like texture.
• Press crust into a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. (Alternatively, use a 9-inch cake pan lined with parchment; the crust can go about 3/4 inch up the sides of the pan.) Set aside.
• Make the filling: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Toast walnuts on a rimmed baking sheet until well browned and fragrant, 5 to 8 minutes; remove from heat and let cool.
• Pulse walnuts, butter, 1/4 cup/50 grams sugar, 2 tablespoons flour and a pinch of kosher salt in a food processor until finely ground. Add the egg and pulse just to blend. Spread walnut mixture on the bottom of the prepared crust.
• Toss cherries with bourbon, orange zest, remaining 1/3 cup/65 grams sugar, remaining 3 tablespoons flour and a pinch of salt. Scatter cherries over the walnut mixture and sprinkle with a bit more sugar to finish.
• Place tart on a rimmed baking sheet lined with foil and bake until the crust is golden brown at the edges and the cherries are thick and saucy, 55 to 65 minutes. Let cool at least 30 minutes before removing from the pan and slicing. (If you can wait an hour to let the juices fully settle, even better.)

CITRUSY CHEESECAKE

Steps:

• Make the crust: Heat oven to 325 degrees.
• Pulse cookies in a food processor until you've got a nice fine crumb (but not a powder). You can also do this by hand if you like, by placing the cookies in a resealable bag and crushing or smashing with a skillet or rolling pin, but you will need a food processor for the filling.
• Transfer crumbs to a medium bowl and add brown sugar and butter, followed by a pinch of salt. Using your hands, mix until the crumbs are evenly coated and the mixture has a nice, wet-sand texture.
• Press the crust onto the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch pie plate, tart pan or springform pan. (Alternatively, you could use a cake pan lined with parchment. You can even use an 8-by-8-inch baking dish here, although expect a slightly thicker outcome.) Use the bottom of a measuring cup or small bowl to make sure the crust is really pressed in there, otherwise the cake could be challenging to cut later on.
• Bake the crust until it is lightly golden brown at the edges (it gets baked one more time, so best not to overdo it here), 10 to 12 minutes.
• Make the filling: Combine cream cheese, sour cream and granulated sugar in the bowl of a food processor and process until the mixture is extremely smooth and well blended, a minute or two, scraping down the sides as needed to incorporate any stubborn chunks of cream cheese. Add eggs, grapefruit juice, zest and a pinch of kosher salt and keep processing until it's even smoother and creamier than before (a miracle!), another 30 seconds or so.
• Pour filling into baked crust (you may have some leftover filling depending on your chosen vessel) and bake until mostly set (a little jiggle is fine), 20 to 30 minutes. The filling should not brown at all.
• Turn oven off and open the door a crack. Let the tart sit in the oven for a few minutes before transferring it to a wire rack on the counter to cool completely. Then place the tart in the refrigerator to chill for at least 1 hour. (This is to prevent any unsightly cracks from appearing on the surface, which can happen when there is a sudden or drastic change in temperature.)
• To serve, scatter fresh citrus slices on top and sprinkle with a little flaky salt.

BOOZY CHERRIES

Steps:

• Combine sugar and cherry juice in a small saucepan. Add salt and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Simmer 1 minute. Add cherries and simmer 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in Kirsch. Let cool completely before storing in an airtight container. Chill for up to 1 week.

WALNUT TART

Steps:

• In a small bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg yolk. Gradually add flour just until blended (mixture will be crumbly). , Press onto the bottom and up the sides of an ungreased 9-in. tart pan with removable bottom. Place pan on baking sheet. Bake at 375° for 12-14 minutes. Cool in the pan on a wire rack. , Sprinkle nuts over crust. In a small heavy saucepan, combine sugar, butter, corn syrup and 2 tablespoons of cream. Boil and stir over medium heat for 1 minute longer. Pour over walnuts. , Return pan to baking sheet. Bake at 375° for 10-12 minutes or until bubbly. Cool on a wire rack. , In a small bowl, beat remaining cream until stiff peaks form. Serve tart at room temperature with whipped cream.