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Cranberry Cream Cheese Tart Recipe

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Cranberry Cream Cheese Tart Recipe

We all have favorite desserts from childhood and one of my favorites was this cream cheese tart made with a graham cracker crumb crust, that was filled with a no bake cream cheese mixture, and then topped with a can of cherry pie filling.  Today, I still make this dessert although I now prefer using this Cran-Raspberry Sauce instead of the much sweeter cherry pie filling.

This is an easy dessert to put together as it uses a graham cracker crumb crust which is, by far, the simplest of all the pie crusts.  If you have problems with getting the right crust consistency, the test to see if you have the right amount of crumbs to melted butter is, once you have mixed the ingredients together, to squeeze some in your fist and if they hold together, you have the perfect crust.  To liven up the flavor of the crust with a subtle ginger taste, I have added some crushed ginger cookies along with the graham cracker crumbs.  Once the crust is made and left to chill in the refrigerator, the next step is to simply mix the filling ingredients together.  The filling is then poured into the crust, covered, and left to chill in the refrigerator several hours or even overnight.

While this tart is excellent as it is, it is even better with Cran-Raspberry Sauce. It has a nice flavor and is made by cooking fresh cranberries and either fresh or frozen raspberries with sugar, a little cornstarch (as a thickener), and a little lemon or orange zest. I like to serve the sauce separate, alongside the tart, so your guests can have as much, or as little, as they like. 

 

Crust:  Mix together the graham cracker crumbs, ginger cookie crumbs, sugar, and melted butter.   Press onto the bottom and up the sides of a well greased 9 inch (23 cm) tart pan with removable bottom or springform pan.  If using a springform pan, press the crumb mixture onto the bottom and about one inch (2.54 cm) up the sides of the pan .  Cover with plastic wrap and place  in the refrigerator to chill for about 30 minutes while you make the filling.

Filling:  In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until fluffy and smooth.  Add the sugar and beat until you have a light and fluffy mixture.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat in the vanilla extract. 

In a separate bowl, beat the whipping cream until soft peaks form.  Gradually fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture.  Spoon or pipe the filling onto the chilled crust.  Cover and refrigerate several hours or overnight. Serve with the Cran-Raspberry Sauce.

Cran-Raspberry Sauce: In a large saucepan combine all the ingredients. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until the sauce thickens and is bubbly. Remove from heat and let cool. (Note: taste and add more sugar as needed.) Cover and store in the refrigerator. Makes about 2 cups (480 ml).

Makes 1 - 9 inch (23 cm) tart.  Serves about 6 - 8 people.

Graham Cracker Crust:

1 cup (100 grams) graham cracker crumbs or digestive biscuits (crushed)

1/2 cup (50 grams) crushed ginger cookies

2 tablespoons (30 grams) granulated white sugar 

5 - 6 tablespoons (70 - 85 grams) unsalted butter, melted

Filling:

One 8-ounce (227 grams) cream cheese, at room temperature

1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated white sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup (240 ml) heavy whipping cream

Cran-Raspberry Sauce:

3 cups (300 grams) frozen unsweetened raspberries

2 cups (200 grams) fresh cranberries

1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated white sugar (or more to taste)

1 tablespoon cornstarch (corn flour)

Zest of a lemon or orange (optional)

 

 

 

 
   

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