I grew up believing the fairy tale about George Washington confessing to cutting down the cherry tree because he could not tell a lie. Even though I now know it’s just a story, I’ve always associated Washington’s birthday with cherry pie – my Mom made one every February when I was little. I still like the tradition, but instead of pie I make this easy and beautiful, ruby-red Cherry Crumble Tart.
The filling in this tart is thick, glossy, bursting with juicy cherry flavor – and straight from a can. But instead of using cherry pie filling, I use Solo brand Cake & Pastry Filling. (This post is not sponsored and this is not an affiliate link – I don’t earn a commission if you buy this product.)
I love cherry flavor but I’ve always been a little turned off by canned cherry pie filling – it’s a texture thing, something about the deflated cherries with their leathery flesh, suspended in syrupy goop. Pastry filling is smooth – no chunks of cherries – and thicker than the liquid in pie filling, with an almost jam-like consistency and an intense fruity flavor.
The smooth fruitiness of the filling contrasts with the tender, buttery shortbread crust – which is a breeze to make with a food processor, and pressed into the tart pan with your fingers, no chilling or rolling required. One dough makes both the crust and the crumble topping. As you crumble the dough over the tart to make the topping, cover most but not all of the filling, so some of the bright cherry color shines through.
I made this Cherry Crumble Tart with Washington’s birthday in mind, but the deep red color makes it perfect for Valentine’s Day, too. Chocolate and cherries are a classic pairing, so if you’re one who feels that Valentine’s requires chocolate, go ahead and add a drizzle of dark chocolate over the tart.
Making this ahead and what to do with leftovers:
- Cherry Crumble Tart keeps for at least 5 days, stored in the fridge. Enjoy your first slice on the day it’s baked for the crispy-crumbliest texture in the crust, but it will still be terrific for up to a week.
- Do not freeze.
Cherry Crumble Tart
Solo Cake and Pastry Filling is not the same as cherry pie filling. It’s thicker, and has a smooth consistency with no chunks of cherries. It really makes this tart, but in a pinch you could substitute cherry pie filling. Drain the filling first in a fine mesh sieve to remove some of the excess liquid so it doesn't make the crust soggy.
Ingredients
- 1½ cups (6 3/8 ounces or 180 grams) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup sugar
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt, or 1/8 teaspoon Morton’s
- 12 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, preferably European-style, cut into ½-inch cubes
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla, divided
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon almond extract
- Two 12-ounce cans Solo brand Cherry Cake & Pastry filling
- 2 tablespoons Amaretto liqueur (optional)
Directions
- Step 1 Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with foil or parchment.
- Step 2 Put the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the butter and pulse until the butter is broken up into pea-sized pieces. In a small bowl, stir together the egg yolk with 1 t vanilla and ¼ teaspoon of almond extract. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and pulse until egg is combined into the flour and the mixture forms a very loose, crumbly dough.
- Step 3 Put the cherry filling in a medium bowl and stir in the remaining ½ teaspoon of vanilla and the Amaretto. If you don’t want to use Amaretto, substitute an additional ¼ teaspoon of almond extract instead.
- Step 4 Spread about ¾ of the dough mixture into a tart pan. Use a 4×13-inch rectangular pan, an 8-inch round, or equivalent size. Press the dough out to cover the bottom and sides of the pan with an even layer, pressing up the sides to level off at the top edge of the pan. The dough will seem very dry and crumbly, but as you press it into the pan it will start to hold together.
- Step 5 Spread the cherry filling evenly over the crust. Take the remaining dough and squeeze small handfuls (about 1 tablespoon at a time) to bring it together into clumps. Tear off small blobs and scatter them over the cherry filling. Don’t completely cover the filling. Transfer the tart pan to the lined baking sheet.
- Step 6 Bake the tart for 30 minutes, then drape a sheet of foil loosely over the top of the tart to keep it from getting too brown. Bake 10 to 20 minutes more, depending on the size and shape of your pan. You can tell it’s done when the filling is undulating slightly – it will be too thick to bubble like a pie filling, but when it’s done it make a slight lifting, rolling motion like the swell of a wave. Baked in a 4×13-inch rectangular pan, the tart should take a total of about 40 minutes.
- Step 7 Carefully remove the tart pan from the sheet pan and transfer it to a wire rack to cool completely. (Use an oven mitt on one hand and a large spatula with the other to support the bottom of the tart.)
- Step 8 Let the tart cool completely before removing the side of the pan, slicing and serving.
