Cherry Tarts

Makes 12

For the tart shells I use a half batch of my basic sweet dough (recipe below)

750 Grams Fresh Pitted Cherries (Stems Removed)

250 Grams White Sugar (Depending on Sweetness of Cherries)

2 tsp Vanilla Extract or 1 Tsp of Vanilla Bean Paste

Juice of 1 Orange

30 Grams of Cornstarch

1/2 Batch of Sweet Pastry Dough (See below)

Place all of the ingredients except the cornstarch and pastry dough into a large pot. Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionlly until the cherries start releasing their juices. Cook for 8-10 minutes. In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch with water to form a loose slurry. Add to the pot and stir immediately to distribute, ensuring that no lumps form. The juices from the cherries will thicken and turn glossy. Remove from the heat and allow to cool while you prepare the tart shells.

Sweet Pastry Dough

250 Grams All Purpose or 00” Flour

50 Grams White Sugar

Pinch of Salt

125 Grams Cold Butter, Cut into Cubes

2-3 Tbsp Cold Water - As Needed

Place the flour, sugar, salt and cold butter in a bowl and quickly blend with your fingers until the butter has broken down into small pea-size pieces (you can also do this with a food processor - simply pulse the ingredients until the butter is in small pieces). Slowly add some cold water and blend (or pulse) until a dough just holds together when squeezed in your palm. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and allow to rest and chill in the fridge for at least 25 minutes.

Roll the dough out to approximately 1/8th of an inch thick. Using a 5 inch ring, cut out circles (re-roll the dough to get 12 circles).

Fit each circle of dough into the holes of a standard muffin tin. Place in the fridge to chill for 10-15 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375F. Remove the tart shells from the fridge and evenly distribute the cherry filling.

Bake on the lower rack for 20-22 minutes until the top of the shells are golden brown. Allow to cool before removing from the tin.