Cherry Mascarpone Tart

Preparation time: 40-60 minutes + 2 hours refrigeration | Serves: 4-6 people

As a child, I often ate cherries by the handful and, in my haste to wolf them down, would swallow them whole (seed and all), and remember Mum constantly warning me that a cherry tree would grow inside my stomach.

While my stomach is sadly tree-free, and thankfully I’ve learned to eat cherries properly since then, when the season comes around I’m always coming up with new ways to eat them in many different ways I can.

This lovely (and easy) recipe celebrates the stone fruit at its finest, with a cinnamon-spiced oat cookie base, topped with creamy folds of mascarpone and handfuls of fresh, juicy cherries.

The full recipe is below and you’ll find my suggestions in the recipe notes.

Ingredients

For the base

• 150 gms rolled oats

• 120 gms brown sugar

• 64 gms flour

• 1 tsp. baking powder

• 1 tsp. baking soda

• 1 tsp. cinnamon

• 110 gms cold butter

• 1 egg yolk

  For the filling

• 150 gms good quality mascarpone

• 250 ml thickened cream (whipped to soft peaks)

• 1 tsp. vanilla paste

• 100 gms honey (or more, according to taste)

• Handful of fresh cherries
  

Method

1. Pulse the dry ingredients in a food processor, then add the cold butter and egg yolk. Blitz till combined.

2. Wrap the dough and refrigerate for about 30-45 mins.

3. Line a 30cm tart tin and preheat the oven to 180°c.

4. Gently press the dough into the prepared tin with your fingers (no need to roll it out).

5. Bake for 18-20 minuteutes till golden (it will puff up). Use a large spoon to gently flatten the base Refrigerate for an hour.

6. Whip the mascarpone and thickened cream till stiff peaks form, then fold in the honey and vanilla paste.

7. Gently tip into the prepared (and chilled) tart base - use a palette knife to smoothen.

8. Top with fresh cherries and honey.

9. Refrigerate till set (about an hour) and serve chilled.

RECIPE NOTES

1. Can I use canned cherries for this recipe?
Canned cherries are a great alternative to fresh cherries in this recipe. Peaches, plums or nectarines would work too.

2. What can I use instead of mascarpone?
Whipped ricotta, cream cheese or dollop cream can be substituted for mascarpone.

3. How long can I store the cherry tart?
The base will get quite soggy after 1-2 hours, so I would recommend eating this tart fresh or within a day or so.

4. Can I make this recipe ahead of time?
You can make the dough for the base ahead of time and bake just before making the filling. The filling can also be made ahead of time and stored in an air-tight container for a day.