Cherry Tart

This Cherry Tart has an Oreo crust filled with chocolate pastry cream, then topped with vanilla bean whipped cream and fresh cherries! It's dark and decadent, but its cool and creamy deliciousness is perfect for Summer!

Course Dessert

Cuisine Tarts

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 10

Chill Time 3

Servings Slices

Calories 635kcal

Author Amee

Equipment

Ingredients

Oreo Crust

25 Oreos (or other chocolate sandwich cookies)
10 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Chocolate Pastry Cream

2 cups half and half (or 1 cup whole milk and 1 cup heavy cream)
½ cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste (see note)
pinch salt
6 egg yolks
¼ cup cornstarch
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, diced and softened
2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
4 ounces dark chocolate, chopped finely (see note)
2 teaspoons chocolate extract (see note)

Whipped Cream

1 ½ cups heavy (whipping) cream, cold
3 Tablespoons powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste (see note)

Toppings

fresh cherries
grated dark chocolate, if desired

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

For Crust

Pulse the chocolate sandwich cookies in the bowl of a food processor until they are fine crumbs.
If you don't have a food processor, do your best to crush them well in a ziploc bag with a rolling pin. The bigger the pieces, the harder it will be for your crust to stay together.
Press the cookie crumbs in the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch tart pan (see note). Refrigerate until needed.

For Pastry Cream

In a small bowl, combine cornstarch and egg yolks. Whisk until smooth. Set aside.
In a medium saucepan, combine milk, cream, sugar, vanilla bean paste (see note), and salt. Cook mixture oven over medium heat until it reaches a boil. Remove from the heat.
Using a heatproof measuring cup, pour about one cup of the hot cream mixture into the egg mixture, whisking constantly. This step tempers the eggs. Once the mixture is combined, pour the tempered egg mixture into the saucepan with the cream mixture.
Cook pastry cream over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it just starts to boil. Mixture will thicken as it cooks.
Remove the pan from the heat, and press the pastry cream through a fine mesh strainer into a heatproof bowl. This step ensures the pastry cream is silky smooth with no small pieces of cooked egg hiding!
Mix in diced butter, cocoa powder (sifted so there are no lumps), chopped dark chocolate (see note), and chocolate extract (see note). Stir until chocolate has melted.
Cover with plastic, pressing the wrap to the surface of the pastry cream to ensure it doesn't form a skin. Refrigerate until completely cooled, at least 3 hours.

For Whipped Cream

Place cold heavy cream and powdered sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Start the mixer on low speed, and gradually increase the speed to high. Whip until the cream thickens and forms peaks.
Add vanilla bean paste (see note), and mix to incorporate.

Assembly

Fill crust with pastry cream, smoothing the top. Top with the whipped cream, fresh cherries, and grated dark chocolate as desired.
The tart will keep in the refrigerator for up to three days, though the whipped cream may start to break down the longer you store it.
Enjoy!

Notes

Note on tart pan: I used a 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom. The recipe can also be made in a 4-inch x 14-inch rectangular tart pan with no alterations to the recipe.

Note on vanilla bean paste: I always have vanilla bean paste on-hand and prefer it's flavor to extract, so that's what I use. If you don't want to use vanilla bean paste, you can add vanilla extract at the end of cooking the pastry cream.

Note on chocolate: I used dark chocolate (60% cacao) in the pastry cream. You can use whatever kind of chocolate you prefer, but I highly recommend a dark chocolate, as it is rich and decadent without being too sweet! It's a lovely complement to the sweet whipped cream and cherries. Please also note that chocolate chips have a stabilizer in them, so they won't melt as readily as a chocolate bar. For that reason, I don't suggest using chocolate chips for this recipe.

Note on chocolate extract: I highly recommend this (sometimes overlooked) extract! It lends an amazing depth of flavor to chocolate baked goods! You can even make yourself some Homemade Chocolate Extract for next time! If you prefer not to use it, you can leave it out or substitute with vanilla extract.

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