Cranberry Cornmeal-Crumb Tart

I'm easily charmed by looks. I fell too quickly for this recipe. It was on the magazine's cover; the first thing I clapped eyes on, before I'd even turned a single page. The splash of red cranberries peaking from beneath the crags of the streusel--I couldn't resist. I immediately informed my mother that my contribution to Thanksgiving was to be a cranberry tart.






























  
I'd made one a few years before- a pear-cranberry tart, I believe. In between I baked a couple pumpkin something-or-others and an apple crisp. I don't like to make the same dessert every year. Although at the same time, I cherish the staples provided yearly by everyone else--the pecan pie, the apples in the salad, the mushroom gravy. It's all got to be there. So the cranberry tart joined a host of other luscious pies, adding to a dessert spread that lasted two nights. It is also vegan, so no one has an excuse not to eat it.

 

The pastry recipe works double duty here, forming both the crust and crumb topping. It's made of flour, ground almonds and cornmeal, creating a fairly rough, sandy texture that contrasts to the smooth tartness of the filling. It was in fact almost gritty—so if you have a food processor or even a blender, I'd suggested adding a few seconds or pulses, to ensure a more finely ground crust. As a whole it's a much less stressful process, however, as the crust is just pressed into a tart or springform pan. No rolling or patching required.

Adapted from Fine Cooking's Cranberry-almond shortbread tart
Cranberry Cornmeal-Crumb Tart
Ingredients:
For the crust and struesel-
1 cup slivered almonds
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 2 TBSP yellow cornmeal
3/4 tsp. salt
1 cup unsalted margarine, softened (I used Earth Balance)
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. almond extract
For the filling-
1 cup granulated sugar
2 TBSP fresh lemon juice (from half a lemon)
3 cups cranberries, thawed if frozen (I used a mixture of fresh and frozen)
3 TBSP jam (I used raspberry)

Directions:
--Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Spread almonds in a single layer on an ungreased baking sheet and toast until fragrant, about 7 minutes.
--In a food processor, blend almonds and 2 TBSP flour until very fine. Pour into bowl and mix with remaining flour, cornmeal and salt.
--In a medium bowl, mix together margarine, sugar, and extracts until well combined. Add dry ingredients and mix until a soft dough forms. Divide dough in two.
--Grease a 9 1/2 x 1-inch tart or springform pan. Press half of dough into bottom and up sides of pan. Wrap other half in plastic. Place wrapped dough and pan in fridge and chill until very firm, or at least 30 minutes.
--Make filling. In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, lemon juice and 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil and cook until sugar has dissolved. Add cranberries and simmer on medium-low heat until berries have popped and liquid is syrupy, about 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in jam and cook 1 minute more. Remove from stovetop and let cool completely.
--Bake unfilled tart shell on a baking sheet for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and spread filling over hot crust in an even layer. Sprinkle with remaining pastry, pressing dough together to create large pebbles of streusel.

--Bake tart until streusel crumbs are lightly browned and cranberries are bubbling, 30-35 minutes more. Cool completely before removing sides of pan.