With Christmas lights sparkling on the street, I was recently inspired to make a fancy Christmas desert. It is a truth universally acknowledged that The Three Tarts Bakery makes some of the most divine tarts in Ottawa, and one of my particular favourites is their white chocolate cranberry pistachio tart. This tart recipe, which infuses orange zest in the shortbread crust, looked like it could challenge The Three Tarts’ recipe – both for taste and for prettiness. The added hint of citrus reminded me of oranges in my stocking on Christmas morning, the cranberries of turkey dinner, and the pistachios of eating nuts around a fire. I could not have hoped for a better Christmas desert.
The tart exceeded all expectations: creamy and smooth, the sweetness of the white chocolate was balanced beautifully by the tartness of the cranberries, the nuttiness of the pistachios, and the zestiness of the shortbread crust. I’ll have to find another excuse to make this again over the holidays!
White Chocolate Cranberry Tart with Toasted Pistachios
(1 10-inch tart: serves 12)
Ingredients:
TART PASTRY
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 egg yolk
2 Tablespoons whipping cream
Finely grated zest of one orange
WHITE CHOCOLATE FILLING
4 ounces shelled unsalted pistachios (or a generous 1/2 cup)
1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries
3/4 cup whipping cream
12 oz white chocolate, finely chopped or white chocolate chips
1/4 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 ounce bittersweet chocolate
Splash of milk
Directions:
TART PASTRY
Cut the butter into the flour and sugar until the mixture resembles coarse oatmeal. Whist together the egg yolk, whipping cream, and orange zest together, and combine with the flour until the dough clings together. Pat into a disc, wrap, and chill for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll our tart pastry on a floured surface and transfer to 10 inch tart pan. Trim edges. Cover with parchment paper and weigh down with beans or pastry weights. Bake for 15 minutes, remove the pie weights, and bake for 10 minutes more, or until golden. Remove the tart shell from oven and allow to cool.
WHITE CHOCOLATE FILLING
Shell pistachios and toast if necessary. Blanch cranberries in a large pot of boiling water. Shock the blanched cranberries in an icebath and allow to dry on paper towel.
In a small saucepan, bring the cream to a boil. Add the white chocolate, wait a minute, and then stir until incorporated. Add the butter and stir until smooth; avoid over-stirring since it will result in air bubbles in the tart.
Randomly scatter the pistachios and cranberries in the tart shell, and carefully pour the white chocolate cream filling overtop until the fruit and nuts are completely covered. You will have a little extra chocolate cream filling left over.
Microwave the bittersweet chocolate in a small splash of milk for 45 seconds. Stir until smooth and the chocolate is completely melted. Dribble the dark chocolate over the tart.
Refrigerate for at least four hours or overnight. One hour before serving, remove the tart to allow it to soften and enhance the flavours. Cut with a hot dry knife.
Bon appetit!
– Catherine
[…] White Chocolate Cranberry Tart with Toasted Pistachios – This combination of tart cranberries, nutty pistachios, and smooth chocolate is elegant and stunning. […]
This is an absolutely fabulous recipe quite decadent!
I tried making this and it turned out very gooey. It didn’t set or harden. Do you Know why that would be?
Hi Jerri,
Did you follow the instructions as written? Did you use frozen or fresh cranberries?
It will be easier for us to know if we know some details about what you did!
I had the same thing happen to me. The first time I made the tart it turned out beautifully, the consistency was spot on. The next time it was a disaster, it seemed as if the ingredients didn’t bind properly and separated in the fridge instead of setting (hard shell on top and gooey on the inside). Any suggestions? I tried with frozen cranberries – would fresh work better? I have made it a couple times since and cannot seem to get the first result (which was uhhhmazing!). So frustrating knowing how delicious it should taste!
Hi Nicky,
Sorry to hear that it didn’t set as you were hoping! I’ve never had the issue of it not setting properly, but can imagine how frustrating that must be. Here are a few suggestions that might help:
(1) I usually use frozen cranberries to blanch, but make sure that they are totally dry on a paper towel before placing in tart shell.
(2) Not all white chocolate is created equal – I use Baker’s white chocolate squares finely chopped.
(3) I’m usually stingy on the whipping cream, using a scant 3/4 cup versus erring on slightly more.
(4) I have only made this tart around the Christmas holidays. Chocolate normally starts to melt around 86 F (or 30 C). In this tart, we’ve folded it into the whipping cream, so it will start melting at an even lower temperature. As I live in Canada, my kitchen in the wintertime is often around 66-68 F (or 19-20 C). If you live in a warmer climate (or heat your house more), the tart may do better to be served directly from the fridge!
Good luck and hope this helps!
– Catherine