Panna Cotta Tart with Cranberry Custard and Meringue

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Recipe by Catherine Pla

Serves 8

Panna Cotta Tart with Cranberry Custard and Meringue

This is a gorgeous tart and another way to enjoy cranberries.

1 9-inch tart shell, (using Tart Dough recipe below) blind-baked for 30 minutes at 375 degrees and cooled*

Panna Cotta layer

  • 2 c heavy cream

  • 1⁄4 c sugar

  • 1 t powdered gelatin (I use Great Lakes) or 1⁄2 envelope unflavored gelatin

  • 2 T cold water

  • 1 t vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract

Cranberry Custard layer

  • 3 1⁄2 c fresh or frozen cranberries

  • 2⁄3 c orange juice

  • 1 t lemon juice

  • 1⁄4 c granulated sugar

  • 1⁄2 c water

  • Pinch kosher salt

  • 4 T unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

  • 1 egg and 2 egg yolks

  • 1 T cornstarch

Meringue

  • 1⁄3 c granulated sugar

  • 2 egg whites

  • 1/4 t cream of tartar, or lemon juice

Make the panna cotta: In a small bowl, combine the 2 tablespoons of water with gelatin to dissolve and bloom gelatin.

Place cream and the sugar in a small saucepan. Whisk to mix well and heat over a medium flame to warm cream and dissolve sugar. Remove from the heat, add in the gelatin mixture and stir. Add vanilla. Pour mixture into the tart shell. Refrigerate 1-2 hours until filling has set.

While panna cotta sets, make the cranberry layer. In a saucepan over medium heat, bring cranberries, orange and lemon juices, sugar, water and salt to a boil. Lower heat, cover the pot and simmer for 10-15 minutes until the berries are completely soft. Strain through a sieve and discard the solids. Return mixture to the pot and add the sugar. Cook over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. Whisk in butter.

In a medium bowl, whisk egg, yolks, and cornstarch. Gradually whisk in half of the hot cranberry mixture, then pour back into the pan. Cook, stirring often, over medium heat about 8 minutes until it has thickened and coats the back of a wooden spoon. Strain into a heat-proof bowl and let cool slightly.

Once the mixture has cooled somewhat, remove tart from the refrigerator and pour cranberry custard over cold panna cotta and refrigerate tart for 2 hours until set, up to overnight.

Make the meringue: In the bowl of a stand mixer set over a pot of simmering water, whisk egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar until foamy, warm, and no longer grainy. Remove from the heat and whisk on medium-high until soft peaks form. Transfer meringue to a piping bag fitted with a 1⁄2” tip, smooth or fluted. Pipe onto tart. Lightly toast meringue with a kitchen torch if desired.


Tart Dough

Make this dough ahead of time, wrap in plastic and refrigerate up to 2 days, or freeze for 2 months. I always make a double recipe and freeze one.

  • 1 1⁄2 c unbleached all-purpose flour

  • 1 T sugar (optional)

  • 1⁄2 t kosher salt

  • 1 stick + 2 T unsalted butter, cut into small cubes

  • About 1⁄3 c ice water

Place flour, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl. Using a pastry blender or two knives, cut the butter into the flour. You can also use a food processor, but be careful not to over process.

Sprinkle ice water, a little at a time, over the mixture, stirring to work in the water. You want the dough to hold together, but not be too wet. Transfer to a floured work surface and gather the dough together to form a ball. Flatten into a disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before using.

*Roll out dough to a circle about 1⁄4” thick. Fit dough circle into a tart pan with a removable bottom. Dock bottom of tart shell with a fork. Place in freezer for 15 minutes as you preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place tart shell on a sheet pan. Line tart shell with a sheet of parchment and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake 20 minutes, then remove pie weights and bake another 10 minutes.

DessertCharlotte Pla