RECIPE: White Chocolate Pecan Tart

November 4, 2013 at 11:37 am · Filed under Christmas, Cookies-Cake-Pastry, Recipes, Thanksgiving & Fall

This Thanksgiving, consider switching the conventional pecan pie for something more festive: a white chocolate and cranberry pecan tart. The recipe, from Pillsbury, has a firm filling, is made in a tart pan.

What’s the difference between a pie and a tart? There are several; you’ll find them at the end of this article.

The filling, with tangy cranberries, rich pecans, and seductive white chocolate, promises to be memorable.

You can buy a premade, refrigerated pie crust or make your own tart crust. Take a look at this chocolate tart crust, which is a nice pairing with the white chocolate filling.

WHITE CHOCOLATE PECAN TART RECIPE

Ingredients

Crust

White chocolate cranberry tart: a Thanksgiving fantasy. Photo courtesy Pillsbury.com.

1 box Pillsbury refrigerated pie crusts, softened as directed on box -or-

One homemade tart crust (recipe)

Filling

1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries

1 cup pecan halves

1 cup white chocolate chips (we use Guittard)

3 eggs

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 cup light corn syrup

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon grated orange peel

Optional Garnishes

Fresh orange peel or candied orange peel (recipe)

Fresh cranberries

Whipped cream (take a look at these recipes for Bourbon Whipped Cream and Holiday Spiced Whipped Cream

Chocolate pecan pie. How is it different from
a chocolate pecan tart? The answer is below.
Photo courtesy McCormick.com.

Preparation

1. PREPARE. Place cookie sheet in oven on middle oven rack; heat oven to 400°F. Spray sheet of foil (large enough to cover pie) with cooking spray. Place pie crust in 10-inch tart pan with removable bottom as directed on box for one-crust filled pie.

2. FILL. Layer cranberries, pecans and white chocolate chips in the crust.

3. BEAT. In large bowl, beat eggs with wire whisk. Beat in brown sugar, corn syrup, flour and orange peel until well blended. Pour over layered cranberry mixture.

4. BAKE. Place tart on cookie sheet in oven; bake 35 to 45 minutes or until crust is golden brown and filling is set in center. After 25 minutes of baking, cover tart with foil, sprayed side down, to prevent excessive browning. Cool completely, about 2 hours. If desired, servewith whipped cream. Store in refrigerator.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A PIE & A TART

We’ve written a whole article on the differences between pies and tarts. Here are some highlights:

GENERAL. Both tarts and pies comprise a pastry crust with a filling that can be sweet or savory. Both are multiple-serving dishes. While individual-size pies are called mini pies, an individual tart is a tartlet.

CRUST(S). Pies can be dual-crust or single-crust. Tarts are always single crust.

CRUST CONSISTENCY. Pies have soft, flaky crusts. They can be made with different types of shortening. Tarts have thicker, harder crusts made with butter.

PAN SIDES. Pie plans have sloped sides. Tart pans have straight or straight fluted sides with removable bottoms.

FILLINGS. Pie fillings can be loose (like a fruit pie) or firm (custard pie and pecan pie, for example). Tarts have firm fillings, based on more eggs or other binders.

In centuries past, terms were used more casually than they are today. Hence, we have Boston Cream Pie, which is a cake; cheesecake, which is a pie; and other modern misnomers. We’ve seen the biggest names in the industry use the terms incorrectly on their websites.

Now that you know the difference between a pie and a tart, pass it on.

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