I am the first to admit that I do not create nearly enough of my *own* recipes. Oh, I tweak, I adapt. I skip some things and add others. But I don’t often enough decide that I want something enough to go out and find my own way to get there, which is a shame because when I do, it is never nearly the disaster I expect it to be.
And when I do, it makes me so happy, so Deb (as I was the only person in this room) let this be a lesson to you: do this more often, okay? Case in point, vowing to give the fresh whole cranberry more of a spotlight this year, I had been trying to figure out what kind of tart could be made with it for weeks, (Yes, besides that one.) but kept coming back to the idea of burying them in some sort of custard or filling to offset how tart they’d be. I knew I liked the frangipane idea, but although I love almond paste tremendously, I’ve always thought plain ground almonds were rather dull.
And this, this is anything but. Ground pecans, a little orange zest, a nip of brandy and whole tart cranberries, cooked until they slump, all filling out The Great Unshrinkable Sweet Tart Shell and we cannot keep our forks out of it. (You know, cutting a little sliver. Determining it an uneven cut. Evening it out. Repeating this until the half you were saving for others looks sorrier and sorrier.) I don’t know if this tart will be half as much of a hit in your house as it has been in our penthouse (ha) but if you don’t like it, just call us. We’ll be right over, slivering knife in hand.
Two years ago: Miso Carrot Sauce With Ginger, Hoisin and Honey Pork Riblets
Cranberry Pecan Frangipane Tart
The problem (as if there could be one) with finding a tart shell that doesn’t lose volume when baked is that you need to rejigger your fillings so they actually, well, fill things. I’ve scaled the recipe I used in the photos (which ended up only about 2/3 way full) to fill and even dome a little in the crust.
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans
1 1/2 tablespoons all purpose flour
2/3 cup granulated sugar
9 tablespoons (1 stick plus 1 tablespoon) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 large egg
1 large egg white
1 tablespoon brandy (optional)
1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest
1/2 to 1 cup whole, fresh cranberries
1 Great Unshrinkable Sweet Tart Shell, baked and cooled
Powdered sugar, for dusting
For pecan filling: Finely grind pecans and flour in processor. Mix in sugar, then butter, orange zest and brandy (if using). Blend until smooth. Mix in egg and egg white. Transfer filling to medium bowl. Cover and chill at least 3 hours. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep chilled.)
Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Spread pecan filling evenly in baked tart crust. Arrange cranberries on top. Use the smaller amount for a sparsely cranberried tart like you see in these pictures. Use the larger amount if you, like us, really like things extra tart.
Bake tart until golden and tester inserted into center of filling comes out clean, about 44 to 55 minutes. Cool tart in pan on rack. Push pan bottom up, releasing tart from pan. (Can be made 8 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.) Cut tart into wedges; sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired, and serve.
Do ahead: Tart dough can be made, wrapped twice and kept in the fridge for a few days, or in the freezer for a week or two. Baked pastry shell, once cool, can be covered in foil and kept at room temperature for up to two days. Frangipane can be made up to three days in advance, and kept in the fridge until ready to fill the shell. Cranberries keep well in the fridge, but even longer in the freezer. Tart can be made up to a day in advance and wrapped in the fridge (probably longer in the fridge, but you may risk losing some crispness) or at room temperature.
This looks great!
I just bought fresh cranberries and I got some tart pans for my birthday so I’ll be trying this out. I love NaBloPoMo! Thanks Deb
Wonderful Thanksgiving idea, I bet no one else is bringing this to the party! 55 minutes to bake? I’m surprised it doesn’t burn by that point, seems like an awfully long time.
That’s simply beautiful. I wonder if I can find fresh cranberries in time for Thanksgiving …
Oh yay, another fresh cranberry recipe! I love the photo of them standing at attention in the unbaked tart.
wow. that looks so good.
Oh this looks delicious! I should really take advantage of the fresh cranberries before they disappear – the only I have so far was Thankgiving (a la canadienne) when I read the cranberry sauce recipe on the back of the bag, didn’t believe it, panicked, and called my mother to verify. Can you tell it was my first Thanksgiving dinner?
I’ve never made a tart before, only pies – how do you get the shell out of the tin? Is it some sort of pop-apart tin, or is the shell sturdy enough to up end it?
That looks amazing! I’m definitely trying that. I looooove fresh cranberries. And nuts too!
Can I just say that NaBloPoMo is definitely God’s gift to humankind? Getting a new Smitten Kitchen post every day is the greatest thing EVER and I will be devastated when November is over. Smitten is my FAVORITE. :) YAY!
If I actually made a tart I would feel so foodie-esque. But I am stuck in a pie rut and I cannot get out.
That looks absolutely delicious! (Like always.) I love this site. Makes me hungry every time I stop by. Yummm.
mmm, love the pecans.
This looks so interesting. I’ve never made a frangipane anything! Looking at the ingredients, it almost looks like pecan pie filling without the corn syrup. I’m going to give this a whirl! Thanks Deb!
It’s given me an idea for a different spin on this that includes dates in the base. Hmmm.
I am definitely going to try this one and the cranberry scones. I adore cranberry. But can anyone tell me what weight is a US stick of butter? We dont use that measure here in the UK?
Moira
This looks and sounds really really good. I have no idea how you are managing to make such amazing recipes every day for NaBloPoMo. I’m doing it as well and while I’ve been fairly good at making lots of new things there are definitely a few filler posts in there! Oh and on making up recipes, I don’t do it enough either but am starting to realise that I can so I guess that’s the first step.
I love frangipane tart, and this one looks very good! I wonder what it taste like with pecans instead of almonds… last week I tried replacing them with ground hazelnuts, and it was too dry. I was not convince. I’ll try with the pecan soon.
I wondered : could I use canned cranberries? Does it taste similar? I’ve never had any (fresh or canned), and I have no idea where to find fresh ones in Paris…
I am touching my nose and pointing at you. We are on the same page, thousands of miles away. I am about to begin testing something very similar to this in London! Reverse “Bakewell.”
The only things I would think about changing in your recipe ~
very slow and low toast your nuts before grinding, or at least half of them.
change out 25-50% of your pecans for almonds (whole or blanched), because only pecans can be too intense and the almonds do not come in as a flavour, just a texture.
I am very excited to be working with cranberries abroad. Nothing quite like them…
So pretty! You are really on a role with some great recipes – and the fact that you did this one solo makes it even more impressive!
Very creative indeed, way to go on creating this one! :)
I have quite a few recipes on my blog :-) But hey, I LOVE what you make, so keep doing it!!
I always think almonds when something is called frangipane, but pecans sound interesting. Deb, would frozen cranberries work? I have a ton in the freezer and don’t really want to buy any more!
That looks absolutely heavenly – love that it has nuts and cranberries. Good job on getting creative!
Looks yummy!
For Canadian Thanksgiving this year, I baked a tart that involved chopped apples and whole cranberries topped with a sour cream-based custard – although I think this particular dessert works much better as a summer dish, baked with peaches and cherries, it was still pretty tasty. The pecan frangipane sounds like it would be even better.
I’m all about ratios – coffee and pie, cake and ice cream, cookies and milk – if one is gone before the other, I have to even it up! I mean what would a sane person do otherwise? So I would end up eating the whole tart because I’d pour myself the biggest glass of milk on the planet and take little sips to make sure I had more milk than dessert. So how do you tell if fresh cranberries are fresh? I saw some in the store the other day (and they’re supposed to be in season), but they weren’t a very vibrant color and smaller than I expected them to be. I’ve never cooked with cranberries before, so it’s new territory.
Bravo on venturing out on your own, especially with a baked item. Baking experiments are so much more brave than cooking experiments, in my book. I love the third photo, with the uncooked cranberries sitting in the pie shell.
I’m going to stash this recipe away. I find it so inspiring, especially since I’m not much of a baker and could never conjure up such inspiration. Sigh, perhaps I’ll give it a try before next October, which is Cranberry Month.
I’m not quite sure about this but I’ll throw it out there anyway. I read somewhere the way to test for cranberry freshness (My First Kitchen) is to try bouncing them. Hence, the reason why they are called the bouncing berry. Is this true, I wonder?
Looks divine!! I am so excited about the great unshrinkable tart shell…I made your maple cream tart for Thanksgiving last year and while it was truly delicious (and I liked the vodka thing going on in the crust), the crust did shrink and I was nervous about it and ended up with this minuscule little crust! :) Still yummy, as I said. But this year I’ll try the new crust and possibly this very recipe, too! (Since I, also, do not make up too many on my own.) Thank you!!
Hi Deb,
This looks divine. My question to you is:
Having fully baked the tart shell beforehand, and then putting it into the over for an additional 55 minutes, do you risk major burning of the crust? Did you cover it with foil on the second bake?
Thanks so much!
Nick — It doesn’t! But, I am going to adjust it to a 45 to 55 minute bracket now, remembering that my oven runs cool.
Victoria — You use what is called a removable-bottom tart pan. The fluted part is really just a ring with a little ledge that the base rests on. When you press up on the bottom, the tart pushes out the top. (You can see in the top photo that it is still sitting on that base plate.)
Moira — A U.S. stick of butter is 4 ounces. So, you’re looking for 4.5 ounces of butter.
Melanie — I have definitely not tested this with canned cranberries, but the only way I’d think they would work is if they came out of the can like beans, firm but easy to rinse off and separate, which I have never seen before. You can swap in anything for the cranberries though, blueberries, raspberries, poached pear slices, etc.
Colleen — Frozen and fresh cranberries are always interchangeable in recipes. It may just add a couple minutes to the baking time.
MFK — These were humongous, totally super-sized. Fresh should mean firm, any soft or deflated ones picked out.
Amanda — It does not over bake (as you can see in the pictures) but instead has a fantastic, deep flavor. In fact, the only reason that there is any extra darkness on the rim of mine is that when I was par-baking it with the foil, I hadn’t covered the top edge well so it had extra exposure to the heat.
This LOOKS beautiful! – and I’m sure tastes as good as it looks. Love your photos and writing as much as your recipes!
Looks like a winner for the Thanksgiving table. And the nicest part, so many of the components can be made ahead.
Deb, I LOVE your blog! And I love that there is someone out there who shares my love of the whole cranberry. Do you happen to have a recipe for cranberry relish in your repertoire? I bought some in a small Amish town in PA a couple years ago and have been dreaming about it since then. Delicious, sweet/tart, vinegar-y with a hint of orange peel….mmmm…
Oooh, this looks beautiful Deb! I tried a pear and frangipane tart last year, but the colors ended up very dull for a holiday table. Cranberries would be the perfect addition. I made some cranberry lemon tartlets yesterday that turned out well, and agree that the cranberry needs to be placed center stage instead of remaining stuck in a sauce! Thanks for sharing the unshrinking tart shell recipe. I can’t wait to give it a try.
Absolutely gorgeous, Deb! And the idea of using pecans is wonderful. Of course, any kind of frangipane falls under the category of wonderful to me. My wife just made a traditional almond version for a Frangipane Pear and Cherry Cake at our house. Also wonderful.
Yum, yum, yum, yum.
If we don’t have brandy could we sub bourbon or rum?
well, now you’ve created a real dilemma for me: this one, or the cranberry, caramel, and almond tart for thanksgiving? decisions, decisions…
Maggie — You can use any booze you think would work, but I’ve always thought of cognac as the perfect brandy replacement.
Tonya — I might try out the Cranberry Walnut Relish recipe that was featured in David Leite’s NYTimes article on cranberries. I have three different cranberry sauce recipes in this post.
Beautiful! I love frangipane, but have only done it with apples. I absolutely love the idea of pecans and cranberries. The frangipane will get my nut-hating husband to get over himself. I’m thinking this is a Saturday morning project. I have a bag of cranberries right here waiting to be transformed into Cranberry Crumb Bars (ala Blueberry Crumb Bars). That must be done, so I’ll have to run out for a second bag!
I have some almond paste I bought on clearance at the grocery. (Yay for wanting the stuff no one else wants.) How much almond paste would I use if I wanted to use that? I have fresh cranberries that are calling for something to do with them.
yum! i love all of the ingredients in the title–cranberries, frangipane, and pecans…great holiday idea!
Wouldn’t it be great if Deb could blog everyday all the time, not just in Nov? (I can just picture her shaking her head emphatically no).
Looks like it turned out beautifully! I’ve only made frangipane a couple of times and I wasn’t a fan since it was so sweet. I think cranberries will offer an excellent balance so I’m going to bookmark this recipe for future reference!
1) oh my yumminess. I am definitely making this.
2) Louise asked if bouncing cranberries is a test of their freshness, and I watched a special on cranberry harvesting last week that shows the big manufacturers bouncing the berries! So, yep, it is true!
3) Your mention of almond paste reminds me of Banket, this Dutch pastry my husband’s family loves. Have you ever tried it out?
i put cranberries on my pumpkin pie like this sometimes, at first glance i thought that’s what this was…
I’ll definitely have to make this! I stock up on fresh cranberries after searching for them one February and realizing they had sold out in December. Buying eight bags seems like overkill, but I’m not going to run out again!
Hey Deb! It’s Alex from the conference on Monday. It was so great to finally meet you! Thanks for chatting with me and sharing some of your blogger secrets to the crowd.
This tart looks incredible and I am insanely jealous.
*drool*
Oh, this is beautiful, Deb! The cranberries peeking out from the frangipane look like rubies. So pretty.
In the UK cranberries only tend to be eaten once a year–cranberry sauce to go with the Christmas turkey! It’s really nice to see a dessert that uses them, especially as they’ve got such great flavour.
Deb… on that last pic there, that forkful of “tarte” isn’t coming in my wide open salivating mouth is it? I love your blog! Keep it up and good luck with NaBloPoMo! You’ve got me smitten over every one of your blog entries!
“….but kept coming back to the idea of burying them in some sort of custard or filling to offset how tart they’d be.”
I think the same way! Last year I made a lemon-lime custard tart (from the cookbook: The Naked Chef, Jamie Oliver) and added cranberries the same way you added to your tart, it came out amazing. I think this year I’ll try yours, it looks great.
This looks absolutely perfect! And I’m sure it tastes perfect too. I need to start cooking/baking with cranberries more. I love them!
Deb,
This is quite impressive! I like the addition of brandy to the filling. I agree that fresh cranberries don’t deserve the reputation that they have and I fully intend to prove their worth this Thanksgiving. :)
Love your creativity. Because of you, I’m buying extra cranberries this year :-)Thanks!
So, my family has fallen in love with your Mom’s Apple Cake. No joke, I’ve already made it twice this week for events and need to make it 3 more times before the end of next weekend for various Thanksgiving events. And, after this post about cranberries I got to thinking, what if I add fresh cranberries to the apple cake? I’m making it tomorrow night, so we’ll see how it goes. Unfortunately, it’s going to husband’s office for a potluck, so I won’t get to try it, but I know I’ll get a report. I’m thinking I should just toss the cranberries in a little extra sugar. Any other thoughts/ideas?
Gosh that’s pretty. And I bet it’s delicious. I’m still trying to figure out my perfect thanksgiving dessert and this would definetly be in the running if I could make a gluten-free tart shell. Ah well, I’ll have to settle for your pretty pictures :)
Wow, thanks so much for this recipe, I made it on Sunday and it was fantastic. I love frangipane, but my boyfriend hates almonds, so this was the perfect compromise. Plus he loves cranberries and pecans. I loved the tartness of the berries against the sweet goodness of the filling. I had to use port as we’d run out of brandy, but it worked really well and it tasted so festive. I don’t think it’ll be long before I make it again!
Made this on Sunday and let me tell you the raves it got! And I myself could hardly quit eating it. My tart shell did get a bit on the almost burnt side so now I know not to cook it quite so long beforehand. Thanks for another FABULOUS recipe, or receipt, as we like to say here in the South. Your recipes make me look like a gourmet and no has to be any wiser!
This sounds DIVINE. Hopefully I can find the time to make this or the almond one after Thanksgiving, while I’m still seeing fresh cranberries around.
That looks great!
Holy Crap I have been working on this thing all day! Lol! It’s in the oven right now and we can’t wait to try it out! Thanks for the recipe and my tart crust did not shrink one teeny bit. :) Hope you had a fabulous Thanksgiving Day… we so appreciate your wonderful website! We steal your recipes all the time! Cheers!
This absolutely has to be one of the best desserts I’ve ever made! You’re right…it’s hard to keep our forks out of it. It does take some time to make, but worth the effort. Thanks…this one is definitely a keeper.
The whole time I was making this I was afraid I was ruining it. However, I’m pleased to say that it came out wonderfully, and really wasn’t at all hard. I used a tablespoon plus a splash of bourbon instead of the brandy, had to add a bit of another egg yolk to the crust to get it to hold together, and forgot to add the extra three tablespoons of sugar, but other than that I followed the recipe exactly. I definitely will do this one again. It tasted like something out of a chic French bakery, not my little condominium kitchen!
This was divine. My sister-in-law brought it over for Thanksgiving dessert and I couldn’t belive how delicious this was…the crust is like a shortbread cookie and the cranberry-studded frangipane was out of this world. All this coming from a person who is not a typical dessert eater! Also, your blog is wonderful! Thanks for sharing…
I made this for Thanksgiving with a store bought pie crust (I’m one of those dough-a-phobes.) The tart deserved better. So for our “second-night” Thanksgiving on Friday I made the butter pat-in-the-pan crust from Joy of Cooking. My first ever homemade crust! The tart was delicious and everyone raved, even my chef friend. Maybe next time I’ll dust off my rolling pin and try your Great Unshrinkable. You inspired me to take the next step and the results were so rewarding, and for that I’m thankful.
Another great one! It already smelled so good when I was just mixing the filling, and the end result was so moist and nutty and tangy – wow!
I posted the photo here on Flickr.
I’m going to try it with walnuts next time, and even more cranberries.
One US stick of butter is 1/2 cup or 8 teaspoons. Hope this helps!
Oh my gosh! I absolutely loved this recipe! I made this for Thanksgiving and the tart didn’t last more than a day!!! The next morning there was 1/4 of the tart left and by noon it was gone! Thank you so much for my dessert success! My mother-in-law has specifically requested that this become my traditional dessert for Thanksgiving!!! yay! :)
I made this tart yesterday and it came out fantastically! The crust is perfect and easy to work with. I had never made frangipane with pecans (usually almonds), but this was very good. The tart is beautiful, really delicious,not hard to make and different from the usual.
Thank you for a wonderful treat!
i made this for our office christmas potluck, and the serving platter was just about licked clean. excellent recipe!
I just made this tonight. It was so delicious! I am definitely going to make it for Thanksgiving 2009. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
I made this for my in-laws over Christmas and it was a huge hit. Just managed to find a couple more bags of whole cranberries, so I may have to go buy myself a tart pan and make it again. :-) Thanks for such a fantastic idea!
This tarte looks incredible! I love frangipane, I love cranberries & I love pecans,,,So I will make this pure lovelyness!
Love the recipe!
Could you eat it warm with a scoop of ice cream, or should it be cooled down to room temperature?
I can’t wait to try this recipe either, Deb! Do the cranberry seeds soften when baked? Are they easily edible or do you have to remove the seeds beforehand?
i made this tart today, and it was AMAZING! i loved it. the pecan and cranberry combination was great, and your un-shrinkable crust…so good (though, i don’t think i did it right, because it shrunk just a touch).
thanks so much!
I’ve always wanted to try some kind of cranberry/pecan pie (a tart will do, of course). This will have to be a contender for Thanksgiving.
I made this for a dinner party and it was amazing! Turned out just right, but next time I’m going to add more cranberries for more tartness. Thanks!
I just discovered this website recently and I’m totally in love with your recipes. Pecan Frangipane? Oh yes, please.
What size tart pan is this filling scaled for? I think I have an 8-inch and an 11-inch pan, but I’m wondering if this is 10. Thanks!!
Oh wait, I see. The crust recipe that you link is for a nine-inch shell. Thankee.
Deb, I’m wondering why frangipane needs to be chilled at least 3 hours. When I make a pear frangipane tart, I pour frangipane into the shell right after I made it. How important is it to chill it? I’ve made at least a dozen of your recipe and love them all (just always reduce amount of sugar!). Thank you:))
It tends to bake up better when it is fully chilled and thickly spreadable. But if you have successfully skipped this step in the past, no reason not to try to do so again for this recipe. (P.S. I actually get really excited when people make this recipe because I think it’s one of the overlooked ones in the archives but we find it dreamy, often with a few more cranberries than I originally suggested. Good luck!)
I just made this for Thanksgiving dinner last night, and it was delicious (and oh so pretty)! The unshrinkable shell came out a little tough, so I might just par-bake it before using it for this recipe again.
Deb, How do you think this tart would be with either a gingersnap crust or graham cracker crust? I haven’t yet summoned the courage to make a true tart shell that involves rolling out dough, but I really want to try this recipe! Thanks for your help!
I think it would be good, but maybe a little sweet since frangipane is so sweet to begin with.
I would like to make your crust when I make this, just one question- you mention using the leftover egg white in the frangipane, but there is an amendment to your crust recipe that says to use the whole egg. Which is better to do? Thank you!!
I made the tart tonight with walnuts instead of pecans and a gingersnap crust (the one from your dark chocolate tart). It was delicious! Possibly too sweet for some (not myself or my boyfriend though), but I used a LOT of cranberries and I think the walnuts in lieu of pecans helped with that as well. Also, I made your carnitas for dinner and they were possibly the most delicious meat I have ever eaten. Thank you for a perfect meal!
I can’t believe I waited three years to make this. If I could I would go back in time and tell past me to make it right this instant. I don’t think I will ever make a gooey corn syrup pecan pie for Thanksgiving ever again. I did add some salt to the frangipane, and a thin layer of leftover cranberry sauce underneath. It turned out like the Bakewell Tart’s All-American cousin. Delicious!
Hi Rupid — You’re right, so confusing. At first, the crust recipe contained only an egg yolk! (I still make mine with just the yolk.) But so many people complained that their crust didn’t come together easily, I added back the white from the egg and everyone was happy. Thus, I’ll update this now.
Thanks so much for the update above Deb! I made the tart this weekend…the filling was easy and SO delicious. The tart crust was my first attempt ever, I did use the full egg as I wasn’t sure. It didn’t turn out as gorgeous as yours, but it was really tasty and I’ll def have to try it again, because I am hooked to the pecan frangipane recipe.
And the extra cranberries totally make it!
PS- Can’t wait for your cookbook and NYC signings :) So happy for you!
THANK YOU, DEB I just noticed your response to my question I asked you a month
ago(11/24). The tart was huge hit on Thanksgiving dinner so I ‘m going to bake it again for Christmas Eve/my birthday party. Yes, I did more than doubled cranberries:)) A beautiful and delicious tart!
When is your NYC signings? I will be in NYC in April…
My mom is lactose intolerant, her husband dislikes chocolate or very rich desserts. When they invited us over for dinner and asked me to make dessert I was stumped!I decided I would make this tart! I did not have a food processor or a tart pan! I hurried to go buy a food processor and the next day, visited 4 stores in search of a 9inch tart pan….All that rushing and work was SOOOOO worth it!!! It was an awesome dessert!! So delicios! The crust is almost like a shortbread cookie! The pecan frangipane was great, and even greater against the tart cranberries..It was pretty and made a perfect end to the dinner! Every recipe I make from your blog turns out perfect! Congratulations for a great blog and a great resource! Cant wait for the cookbook!
The ingredients list says 1/2 cup + 3 tbsp. of sugar, yet the instructions mention 2/3 cup of sugar. Are these really the same amounts?
2/3 cup is 10.6 tablespoons, 1/2 cup + 3 tablespoons is 11 tablespoons so essentially, yes. But, the instructions should be less confusing so I will fix. Thanks for pointing it out.
I made this pie and also the choc tart with ginersnap cookies for Thanksgiving this year. Both turned out extremely good. I did not have pecans so I used almonds. Taste was awesome – I did just about handful of fresh cranberries. I am going to try this using pecans, next time. It was just perfect. Guests were raving the crust and the pie. Thank you for making me look like a professsional chef. I love your recipes!
This is delicious! I just tried it to see if it would work for Christmas dinner…judging by the fact that I can’t stop sneaking little slices off, I think it will work! Festive but not overwhelming, and the cranberries are just right. (I used 3/4 cup.) Thanks Deb!
I was thinking about adding pears to this tart (like those in your pear almond tart), for a pear-cranberry pecan tart. Do you think that will be an overwhelming amount of fruit? Also, I noticed that you say in the pear recipe that it can be made 8 hours ahead, and this can be made a day ahead and kept at room temperature. If I add pears, will this tart not hold up as well at room temperature? I’m definitely baking this (with or without pears) Wednesday and then bringing it to Thanksgiving. Thanks for your help!
Ooooh, I think pears would be delicious here, as many people have felt that it benefits from additional fruit. You can use the pear-almond tart as a way to eyeball the amount, maybe just using 2/3 of the pear suggestion so you can use 1/3 of the volume as cranberries. This is one of those desserts that does not need to be kept in the fridge, but it does extend shelf life (i.e. if you were hoping it would last five days instead of two or three). Hope that helps.
Hi,
I know this might be a very silly question, but where does the frangipani come in? Is it frangipani essence? Or flowers? Is it mixed in or sprinkled on the top?
Also, is it alright to use fresh frozen cranberries?
Thanks so much, I’m so looking forward to cooking this!
Frangipane is a sweet filling usually made ground almonds, no frangipani flowers involved!
Looks delicious! Dreaming of eating it, and planning on making it for Thanksgiving. Wonder if it is possible to boost the alcohol (bourbon instead of brandy even perhaps) by soaking the fresh cranberries in bourbon for a couple of hours? Will it add in too much moisture? Any thoughts? Thanks!
This pie looks scrumptious! I want to make it this thanksgiving but with almond, as I already have almond meal in the house. Do you have any idea per chance of how much I should use? How many cups of pecan flour did the two cups of chopped almonds yield? Thanks very much.
Oups I mean chopped pecans above
I have made this tart three time. I found that chilled frangipane got too hard to spread in the tart shell. So I spread them into the shell right after the frangipane was blended. For pate sucree, using only egg york works better than whole egg.
I love this tart:-)) Thank you
anne — I did not measure the volume, but if you have a scale, you’re looking for about 110 grams of pecan meal/flour. If you’re eyeballing it and don’t have a scale, look for a little less than a cup, perhaps 2/3 to 3/4 cup. It’s just an estimate, though.
Thanks so much! I’m making it this afternoon to bring to thanksgiving!
I figured that I should comment on this post considering how beloved this tart is amongst everyone who I’ve shared it with. Since coming across it in 2011, I’ve made this exact recipe and various nut and fruit combinations based off of it, uncountable times. It’s still my standard for the holidays and today I’m making it again for a Thankful-Friendsgiving dinner. So in that spirit, thank you for sharing this!
I made this yesterday for Thanksgiving and it was delicious. I used 3/4 cups of cranberries and next time I make it I will use more.
I decided to put a Louisiana twist & shout on the classic French king cake by adapting your recipe for pecan frangipane. I use a little root beer extract instead of vanilla, and made candied kumquats from some local side yard citrus trees growing in New Orleans city limits! I knew your recipe would be dependably perfect, and it is exactly all that. Thank you, Deb!
Pretty neat this recipe is still inspiring riffs nearly a decade later from first publication….
I made this exactly as directed in the recipe but with tart cherries instead of cranberries. It was a hit. I might have overdone it on the orange zest, which I didn’t know was possible, but I didn’t measure and just zested a whole orange, and the zest flavor was quite strong. But it was raved over. The unshrinkable crust did shrink for me and I was a bit worried about it but it tasted amazing.
Hi,
In the recipe for the Great Unshrinkable Tart Shell, you offer two baking times for partially and fully cooked. In this recipe for the Cranberry Frangipane Tart itself you talk about using a baked tart crust. I’m not sure which level you want here, partial or full.
I’m making this today so I’m going to take my chances with partial, but would really appreciate knowing what you do.
Thanks, Clare
Use the partially baked. You’ll bake it a second time with this filling. Fully baked is for a pudding pie or something where it won’t go back in the oven. Hope you enjoy!
I was just reminded of the NYT cranberry curd tart, and I’m wondering if I could combine the two recipes – my initial plan was to make half of this pecan frangipane, bake for ~20 minutes, then pipe (a half-recipe of) the cranberry curd on top and bake for another ~8. Does that seem like it might work? Thank you!
This fantastic smelling tart is in the oven right now, and I just thought I’d give a quick word of advice to any holiday bakers who might benefit from it: put a sheet pan underneath your tart pan! I didn’t think to do it and it has oozed butter all over the oven.
Made two crusts (both of which shrunk something terrible, but were still utterly delicious) and doubled the recipe for the filling, using 250 grams of almond flour, which worked great. Skipped the orange zest. Next time I might scale back a bit so as not to have any filling left over; might try it with 110 grams of flour (instead of 125) and 8 Tbs of butter.
Everybody raved about these — even the people I KNOW don’t like nuts OR cranberries. Will make again, happily.
How should this be stored if made a couple of days before thanksgiving?
Fridge will be fine
I made this last week and two of us ate it in a record-setting 48 hours. It was really a spectacular combination of nutty, buttery, tangy, sweet…just hits all the right notes. I’m coping this down in my notebook by hand so I never lose track of this recipe. Thank you, Deb, for another go-to recipe!
One of the best new recipes I’ve tried in a long time! Super easy, and a great new addition to the Thanksgiving dessert selection. Might be making it for Xmas too!
coming in a smooth 13 years later to ask: do you think one might be able to use the dough from the rhubarb almond picnic bars instead? they are my very favorite, and the dough is so easy!
Yes, I’ve used doughs like that for sweet tarts before. Go for it!
I’ve made this tart almost every Thanksgiving for the past 7 years and it’s my family’s favorite holiday dessert. We like it real tart so I load up on the cranberries. Thanks for this one!
I made this to bring to Thanksgiving today. I’m pretty sure I will no longer be welcome at Thanksgiving without it. Thanks for a delicious recipe!
Made this as a New Year’s Eve dessert, and everyone really enjoyed it!
The “unshrinkable sweet tart shell” worked well, but the edges got quite dark even just after pre-baking, so I protected them with a foil sheet when baking with the filling. My tart pan leaked butter both in pre-bake and in the final bake, so I was glad to have put it on a rimmed baking sheet. I was just wondering if the baking sheet insulated the pan from below so that things didn’t set as fast as they should, promoting the butter leakage? I guess I will never know, but I’m off to nibble on the leftovers… ;)
I have made this for years and adore it. Do you think it would work with almonds instead of pecans?
Happy holidays Deb (wish I was YOUR guest) would browning & rechilling the butter be worth it for flavor or just meh? I didn’t bother this time as I’m doing a Brown butter carrot cake & wanted different flavors.
I used the last of my maple sugar (1/3 cup)–would it be too much “maple flavor” to use all M.S. next time???
Also, I did a mix of brandy, orange liqueur & allspice dram & as well as added a little ground allspice (FORGOT I had cranberry liqueur which the NEXT one will have).
Hopefully, guests will like it.
Thank you. I just made this yesterday again on a whim so I’m refreshed on it. I think brown butter has a moderate chance of coming through here, more if you hold back or omit the orange zest. I’ve toned down how much zest I add over the years since I really love the brandy-pecan-butter flavor. Also I remembered that even when I use 1 cup cranberries, I always wish I studded in more — shown here is just over 1/2 cup.
This was a huge hit for TG dessert. I thought the carrot cake would be the show stopper (Brave Tart) but this was the crowd pleaser! Deb I will DEFINITELY brown the butter next time, and use some cognac. The MAPLE SUGAR did come thru a bit–I need to use more next time. Using MS in the crust (and again brown butter) will take it to the next level. I want to experiment w a NUT crust–which one would you recommend on your site? Although I covered the entire top w cranberries, we all wanted MORE cranberry flavor. So, taking a page from Brave Tart, I’m thinking –POWERED freeze dried cranberry mixed w powered Maple sugar for the top.