Cherry Hazelnut Tart Food

CHERRY TARTS

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine flour and salt. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add enough water until dough forms a ball. Refrigerate for 30 minutes., Preheat oven to 450°. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut out eight 5-in. circles. Place each over an inverted custard cup on an ungreased 15x10x1-in. baking pan; flute edges. , Bake 10-11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool 5 minutes before removing tart shells from custard cups; cool completely on wire racks., For filling, in a large saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch. Drain cherries, reserving 1 cup juice. Set cherries aside. Stir reserved juice into sugar mixture until smooth. Bring to a boil; cook and stir 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat; stir in cherries, butter, almond extract and food coloring if desired. Cool to room temperature. Spoon about 1/4 cup filling into each tart shell.

BLUEBERRY HAZELNUT FRANGIPANE TART

Steps:

• Pate Sucree: In a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or using a hand mixer), mix the flour and sugar. Add the butter and mix until coarse and sandy. In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolk, cream, and vanilla together. Add to the flour mixture and mix at low speed just until combined. Turn out onto a work surface and form into a ball. Roll out dough to fit a 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom, lightly press it into the pan, and chill for at least 30 minutes.
• Filling: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, pulse the hazelnuts and sugar just until sandy. Do not overprocess, or the mixture will become pasty. Add the butter and process just until blended. Add the eggs and process until blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the vanilla and flour, and process until smooth. Spoon into the unbaked tart shell.
• Spread 1 cup of the blueberries in a single layer over the frangipane. Bake until the frangipane is golden brown and puffy and the crust is golden brown, 45 to 50 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.
• In a medium saucepan, bring the jam and water to a boil. Immediately turn off the heat. Working quickly, add the remaining blueberries all at once and fold gently with a spatula until evenly coated. Pour into the center of the tart and gently spread over the entire surface. Let cool until set, then remove the sides of the pan. Serve at room temperature.

CHERRY HAZELNUT TART

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°F.
• Unfold the ready to use pie crust on a lightly floured surface.
• With fluted pastry wheel, cut 12 stripes, 3/4-inch wide.
• Reserve 2 strips for other uses.
• Unfold second pie crust and fit into a 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom; trim rim.
• Mix pie-filling, lemon zest and cinnamon and spread on the crust.
• Sprinkle with chopped nuts.
• Evenly arrange 5 strips across the top in a parallel fashion with 1 inch space in between.
• Lay second layer of strips in an angle over the first layer to form lattice look.
• Mix egg and water, brush on lattice, sprinkle with sugar.
• Bake at 425°F until crust is browned and the filling is bubbly, about 20 minutes.
• Let cool on rack for 15 minutes.
• Remove pan side.
• Great with heaps of lightly sugared whipped cream.

DEEP DISH CHERRY PIE WITH HAZELNUT CRUST

Steps:

• In a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or using a hand mixer), cream the butter until smooth. Add the confectioners' sugar and mix. Add the eggs and mix. Add the flour and mix until almost incorporated. Add the hazelnuts and mix just until smooth, being careful not to over mix the dough.
• Form the dough into 2 disks and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill at least 2 hours or overnight. If the dough is refrigerated overnight, remove it from the refrigerator 30 minutes before using. Roll out both disks, cut them out a little bigger than the size of your individual baking dishes, and chill while you make the filling.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Drain the cherry juices into a medium saucepan; you should have about a cup of juice. Add the cornstarch, sugar, ginger, if using, and lemon juice, and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the cornstarch. When thickened, turn off the heat, stir in the cherries, and set aside to cool slightly.
• Divide the cherry filling among the baking dishes. Carefully place the rolled-out crusts on top. To decorate them, brush the surface of the crust with milk, sprinkle lightly with sugar and use a sharp small knife to make a cross hatching pattern, cutting one vent hole in the center. You may also cut out strips from the leftover dough, and make designs or cherries from it, and adhere them to the top with a little water. Then wash with milk and sprinkle with sugar.
• Place the pies on a sheet pan to catch any juices that boil over. Bake until the crust is golden brown and the juices are bubbling at the vents, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool to room temperature. Serve at room temperature.

CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT TART

Steps:

• To prepare crust: Lightly coat a 9-inch removable-bottom tart pan with cooking spray. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Coat the paper with cooking spray.
• Pulse hazelnuts in a food processor until finely ground. Add flour, granulated sugar and salt and pulse for a few seconds to combine. Mix egg and melted butter in a small bowl and then add to the food processor. Pulse until combined and a smooth dough forms. Transfer the dough to the prepared pan. Using floured fingertips, press it firmly over the bottom and up the sides. Prick a few times with a fork. Freeze the crust for 15 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Place the tart pan on a baking sheet. Line the crust with parchment paper or foil with a 1-inch overhang. Fill with pie weights (or dried beans). Bake until the edges start to turn slightly golden brown, about 15 minutes. Lift out the paper (or foil) and pie weights. Bake the crust for 5 minutes more. Transfer to a wire rack.
• Reduce oven temperature to 325°.
• To prepare filling: Set a metal bowl over a saucepan of barely simmering water; the bowl should not touch the water. Add chocolate, butter and cream to the bowl and stir with a silicone spatula until smooth. Remove the bowl and set aside to cool slightly.
• Combine eggs, brown sugar and hazelnut (or vanilla) extract in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat with the whisk attachment on medium-low speed until the mixture turns pale yellow and the eggs have tripled in volume, about 5 minutes.
• Carefully drizzle and fold the warm chocolate mixture into the eggs with the spatula using a circular motion. The mixture will deflate slightly, but be careful not to lose all the air. Pour the filling into the crust and smooth the surface.
• Bake the tart until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Release the pan sides and transfer the tart to a serving plate. Decorate with hazelnut spikes, if desired.