Serves 8-10 people

Ingredients

For the Pastry Cream

4 cups milk
¾ cup flour
1 cup sugar
¼ pound butter
6 egg yolks
1 teaspoon salt
2 vanilla beans
1 tablespoon Rum

For the Dough

2 ½ cups almond meal
2 cups all purpose flour
1 ¼ cup sugar
½ pound butter
2 eggs
1 teaspoon almond extract
zest of one lemon
zest of one orange

For the Cherry Filling

1 ½ cups dried cherries
1 bottle of red wine
¾ cup sugar

Special Equipment

pastry bags
pastry brush
tartlet pans or 9” cake pans
rolling pin
plastic bowl scraper

Instructions

For the Pastry Cream

Scrape the vanilla bean and place in the milk. Bring to a boil.
Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar until pale. Add the flour and whisk until incorporated. Slowly add the hot milk to the egg mixture while whisking and place the mixture back on the fire.
Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thick.  Stir in the butter and rum and pour into a shallow pan.
Cover immediately with plastic wrap and refrigerate to set.

For the Dough

Combine all the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl with the zest.  Cut in the butter.  Mix in the eggs and almond extract and mix until dough just comes together.

For the Cherry Filling

Combine the cherries and wine in a saucepan and simmer until the wine reduces by half.  Add the sugar and continue to simmer until it becomes a thick syrup.

To Build

Place 3/4 of the dough into the bottom and sides of a tart pan.  Fill with pastry cream and cherries.  Cover with remaining dough.

Brush with egg wash and bake 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Let rest 20 minutes, at least.

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