Very Berry Cherry Italian Cream Tart

Very Berry Cherry Italian Cream Tart. An elegant dessert to serve, it took me longer to try and get a good picture than it was to make from start to finish!

Tart Crust

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup salted butter softened

1/4 cup granulated white sugar

1 large egg, lightly beaten

Removable tart pan

cooking spray

Fruit Suggestions: canned peaches, pears, plums, cherries, raspberries, blackberries, boysenberries, blueberries. Fresh when in season.  When Erin from The Queen of Tarts Blog contacted me about my Blueberry Donut post on Foodbuzz, I was so honored to be asked if she can repost using Oregon canned fruits in her post. She offered to send me some samples and I couldn't wait to whip something up with them. Thanks Erin!


Topping:

 2 cups assorted canned or fresh fruits to equal 2 cups of fruit total ( cherries, blueberries and red raspberries, blackberries etc) drain and set aside, adding water to make one cup of juice. ( I used a mixture of dark sweet canned cherries drained,  1/2 cup of fresh blueberries and  1/2 cup fresh red raspberries, around two cups of fruit total)
1 tablespoon corn starch per cup of juice

Mix cornstarch in a small amount of water to make a smooth paste. Pour the drained juice into a small saucepan on medium heat, ( if using all fresh fruit, you can use apple, pear or other fruit juice to make one cup) add the cornstarch and cook till thickened. Takes around 3 to 4 minutes after boiling. Cool.

For the dough:

1/2 cup crushed nuts such as: (walnuts, hazelnuts, pecans or almonds, pistachio or macadamia) for the bottom of the tart pan

Roll out dough on parchment paper, lift to carefully place in lightly oil sprayed tart pan.  Sprinkle with chopped nuts.  Prick the bottom of the dough with a fork.

Bake until golden or around 30 minutes at 375 degree hot oven. Cool completely.

For the Italian Pastry Cream:

1 1/4 cups whole milk

3 large egg yolks

1/3 cup granulated white sugar

1/8 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon grated orange or lemon peel

1 tablespoon almond or vanilla, added last.

Blend dry ingredients in a bowl set aside. Add milk slowly beating till smooth whisk in yolks, cook till thickened, remove from heat stir in peel and add vanilla.  Cool.

Assembly:

Pour the cream filling  on the crust,  top with fruit of choice. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to eat.

Try some of my other dessert tarts:

Amaretto Strawberry Cream Tart
Raspberry Coconut Cream Tart
Nutella Mousse Tart
Cannoli Tarts