Cranberry Crumble Tart Recipe (2024)

Recipe from "Nancy Silverton's Pastries From the La Brea Bakery"

Adapted by Amanda Hesser

Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
Rating: 4(66)
Notes: Read community notes

Featured in: The Case of the Vanishing Berries

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Ingredients

Yield:8 - 10 servings

For the Pastry Dough

1¼cups plus 2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
¼cup sugar
1stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes and frozen
1extra-large egg yolk
2tablespoons heavy cream

For the Compote

¾cup sugar
1vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
1cinnamon stick
1cup fresh cranberries
¾cup plus 2 tablespoons dried cranberries
¾cup orange juice
1tablespoon cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tablespoon water

For the Streusel Topping

¾cup unbleached all-purpose flour
¾cup sugar
¾teaspoon cinnamon
1½sticks unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes and frozen
2tablespoons lightly beaten egg

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Nutritional analysis per serving (10 servings)

508 calories; 25 grams fat; 16 grams saturated fat; 1 gram trans fat; 7 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 69 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 44 grams sugars; 4 grams protein; 11 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Preparation

Make Pastry Dough
1. Step
  1
  In a food processor, combine flour and sugar, and pulse to mix. Add butter, and pulse until it is the consistency of fine meal. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolk and cream. Add to flour mixture, and pulse a few times until dough barely comes together.
2. Step
  2
  Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Dip the heel of your hand in flour, and working with small sections, smear dough away from you to blend it together. Gather into a ball, and flatten into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap, and chill at least 2 hours. Then roll out dough to ⅛-inch thick, and line a 12-inch tart with it. Chill.
Make the Compote
1. Step
  3
  In a large, deep saucepan, mix ½ cup water with sugar. Add vanilla bean and seeds and cinnamon stick. Bring to a boil. When sugar begins to color, 3 to 4 minutes, tilt and swirl pan to cook evenly. When mixture is an even caramel color, remove from heat.
2. Step
  5
  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Make the Compute
1. Step
  4
  Add fresh and dried cranberries, and orange juice. Return to heat, and cook 5 to 8 more minutes, until cranberries swell and begin to pop and any hardened sugar has dissolved. Strain liquid into a bowl, reserving fruit in a mixing bowl. Return liquid to a saucepan, bring to a boil and whisk in cornstarch mixture. Cook until juice is shiny, bubbly and slightly thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Add to fruit. Let cool, then discard vanilla bean and cinnamon stick. There should be about 3 cups of filling.
Make Streusel Topping
1. Step
  6
  In a food processor, combine flour, sugar and cinnamon, and pulse to mix. Add butter, and pulse until it's the consistency of coarse meal. Add egg, and pulse just to combine.
2. Step
  7
  Spoon compote into tart shell, and spread in a thin layer. Crumble topping evenly over the top. Bake until compote is bubbling and topping is browned, 35 to 45 minutes.
  See Also
  Coconut Layer Cake Recipe

Ratings

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Cooking Notes

Kate5 years ago

I thought this would dessert would be tart and sour, but it was surprisingly sweet, subtle and complex. The cinnamon and vanilla added a lovely flavor. It was a lot of work to make but is really delicious

Nick2 years ago

Mine turned out just like the photo and was great although I made some changes. I used two cups fresh cranberries and skipped the dried. I used Mark Bittmann's sweet tart shell recipe which is similar. Cooking time for the caramelizing of the sugar and the overall baking time took much longer so trust that you're not doing anything wrong when it takes a while. My only change in the future would be to increase fresh cranberries to 2.5-3 cups to get more filling and make it less sweet.

leskap194 months ago

Filling was excellent. i was dubious about the dried cranberries but it added a nice texture. The topping wasn't my favorite. I would use a different crumble topping next time. My pie crust was dense but that is my own fault as I have not mastered pie crust yet.

Tracy B.4 months ago

Delicious! Followed precisely but only had just over 2 cups of compote vs 3. Also, used 11-inch tart pan. Fit nicely.

leskap194 months ago

Any suggestions about make ahead? i could make the crust and the compote ahead. But has anyone cooked this the day before and then served the next day? should it be served warm? or room temp??

Anne4 months ago

possibly the most underrated recipe on this site. I made this last Thanksgiving, and am still thinking about the incredibly delicious and delicate filling a year later. I substituted vanilla extract for the vanilla bean - I wish I had written down how much, but I assume it was one generous teaspoon.

Anne1 year ago

Based on the rave reviews, I'm making this tomorrow, and can confirm that the filling I made tonight is indeed delicious - the cinnamon and vanilla are lovely. Does anyone have thoughts on using a second tart crust to cover it, in lieu of the streusel topping? Maybe using half of a crust recipe for the top?

dawnd2 years ago

Definitely need to up the amount of cranberries!

Nick2 years ago

Faith2 years ago

I have made many tarts in my day and this one now tops my list - the perfect holiday treat. Most cranberry desserts are either much too sweet or too sour. This one hit the perfect balance!

Kati3 years ago

This was a complex recipe for me to execute, but the result surprised me! It was a smooth, multi-rich flavor explosion for my senses and my tastebuds. It was tart and sweet and the flavors melded to perfection. This is a festive dessert perfect for the holidays or anytime, really. This is definitely a “go to” recipe when cranberries are in season.