Cranberry Walnut Tart

Special equipment needed: a 10- to 11-inch round tart pan (1 inch deep) with a removable bottom and pie weights or raw rice.

Prepare the dough:

Whisk together flour, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Blend in butter with your fingers or a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal with some small (pea-sized) butter lumps. Beat together egg yolk and water with a fork and stir into the flour mixture until well combined.

Gently knead mixture in the bowl with floured hands just until a dough forms. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently 4-5 times more. Form dough into a ball, then flatten into a 5-inch disk. Chill, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, at least an hour.

Cook’s note: Dough can be chilled up to 2 days. Makes enough dough for one 10-11 inch tart.

Make shell:

Roll out dough into a 13-inch round (1/8 inch thick) on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin and fit into the tart pan. Trim the edge of the dough, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang, then fold the overhang inward and press against the side of the pan to reinforce the edge. Lightly prick the bottom of the shell all over with a fork, then chill 30 minutes.

Put oven rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat oven to 425°F. Line the shell with foil and fill with pie weights.

Bake until pastry is set and pale golden on the rim, about 15 minutes. Carefully remove foil and weights and bake shell until pale golden all over, 5 to 10 minutes more. Transfer shell in the pan to a rack.

Make the filling:

Move oven rack to the middle position and reduce oven temperature to 350°F.

Whisk together eggs, brown sugar, corn syrup, butter, salt, and vanilla in a bowl until smooth, then stir in cranberries and walnuts.

Pour filling into shell and bake tart until filling is set and golden, 40 to 45 minutes. (If pastry edge darkens before tart is done, cover edge with a pie shield or foil.) Cool completely in the pan on the rack.

Cooks’ notes:
Tart can be baked 1 day ahead and kept, covered, at room temperature.
For a more unusual presentation, you can make the tart in an 11- by 8-inch rectangular fluted tart pan with a removable bottom.

Makes 8 to 10 servings.