The Best Gluten-Free Dessert to serve for the Holidays: Cranberry Curd Tart

This smooth and creamy tart bursting with the fresh bite of cranberry is the perfect holiday dessert to serve this year and it’s gluten-free.

If you follow my blog, you know I am a big fan of America’s Test Kitchen. I am inspired by their creative recipes, but like to simplify when I can. This recipe is one of those times that every step is worth the tiny bit of effort. You will need a few kitchen tools to make this tart: a food processor, a fine mesh sieve, a 9- inch tart pan with removable bottom and piping bags with large tips for piping the whipped cream.

You can make this tart up to 24 hours in advance. Just cover loosely with plastic wrap. Do not pipe on the whipped cream until just before serving. Store leftovers on the tart pan and cover with plastic wrap or under a glass dome.

I hope you will give this recipe a try. It is so different that the typical gluely pumpkin and pecan pies that just weigh you down even more after a big holiday meal. A glass of sparkling champagne would be perfect with this dessert.

Enjoy!

What makes this recipe so special:

• The almond flour crust is a breeze to make and pops out of a tart pan so easily exposing the gorgeous fluted edges.
• The sharp cranberry taste is the perfect light and refreshing dessert after a big holiday meal.
• You can adjust the sugar to your liking- I think the sugar about is just perfect, but less will make it even sharper.
• This tart can be made ahead making it perfect for busy days when you have lots of dishes coming out of the kitchen.
• This recipe is Gluten-Free. The almond flour crust has no gluten and the filling is made without gluten as well.

I am posting the almond crust I made in another post just in case you want to use your own recipe. I like the lightness of the almond crust. Watch it closely while it bakes because it can brown very quickly. I think any flakey pie crust molded into a tart pan would be lovely. I added a few things to this curd recipe. After making one batch, it was very tart- very. I added a bit more sugar, less almond extract and the rinds of one orange for a little citrus taste.

Cranberry Curd Tart

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Recipe by Meggen Wilson Course: DessertCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Medium

Servings

8

servings

Prep time

2

hours 

20

minutes

Cooking time

15

minutes

Calories

548

kcal

This sharp tart bursting with fresh cranberry flavor is the perfect dessert to serve this fall after a heavy hoilday meal.

Ingredients

• 4 cups 4 fresh or frozen cranberries

• 1 1/3 cups 1 1/3 sugar

• 1/2 cup 1/2 water

• 1/4 tsp 1/4 kosher salt

• 1 1 orange- peel only

• 3 3 large egg yolks

• 2 tsp 2 cornstarch

• 4 TBSP 4 unsalted butter, softened and cut into pieces

• Topping

• 1 cup 1 heavy cream

• 2 TBSP 2 sugar

• 2 TBSP 2 reserved cranberry curd

• Pre- baked Almond crust or pie crust

Directions

• Bring cranberries, 1 1/3 cup sugar, 1/2 water, salt and orange peels to a boil over medium heat in a medium size saucepan. Lower heat to a simmer, cover. Simmer for 10 minutes or until cranberries have burst and mixture thickens.
• Whisk 4 egg yolks and 2 tsp corn starch together in a small bowl. Remove the orange peel from the cranberries. Pour the cranberry mixture into the bowl of a food processor, add in the egg yolk mixture and process until smooth about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides. Leave mixture to cool in the food processor about 30 minutes. A skin will form- this is fine.
• Add the softened 4 TBSP of butter to the cranberry puree and process another 30 seconds until smooth. Strain the mixture over a fine mesh sieve into a large bowl. It helps to use a scraper to press the puree through the sieve. Remove about 2 TBSP of the curd and place in a bowl with the 1 cup of heavy whipping cream and 2 TBSP of sugar. Chill the cream mixture.
• Pour the strained curd into the prepared (baked) tart shell. Let tart rest at room temperature for 4 hours or cover loosely and place in a fridge until serving. Overnight is fine. The tart will set up nicely.
  
• In the bowl of a stand mixture, whip the cream mixture on high until stiff peaks form. Place into a piping bag with a large pastry tip and pipe a decorative border on the tart. Serve immediately.

Equipment

• SieveSieve
• Food Processor Food Processor
• Tart Pan Tart pan

Recipe Video

Notes

• I recommend a tart pan instead of a pie plate. A tart pan allows the dough to stick to the edges while a pie plates will see the dough slide down and collapse.
• Try adding fresh ginger to the curd for even more bite.
• Fresh heavy cream is the preferred topping. Canned whipping cream will not hold its shape for long. The pectin you stir in from the reserved curd allows the cream to remain in its shape after piping.

Other Cranberry dishes to try:

• Orange Cranberry muffins with walnut crumble
• Tipsy Cranberry Sauce
• Jammy Cranberry Moscow Mule
• Cranberry Champagne Cocktail