Cranberry Curd Tartlets

70 Ratings
  • 5 11
  • 4 11
  • 3 28
  • 2 16
  • 1 4

A tart curd filling made by simmering cranberries with water and orange juice is nestled into miniature tartlets and topped with whipped cream. 

Martha Stewart Living, November 2013

Gallery

Credit: Ryan Liebe

Recipe Summary

total:
1 hr 15 mins
prep:
25 mins
Yield:
Makes 40 tartlets
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Ingredients

Directions

  • Place cranberries, water, and orange juice in a saucepan, cover, and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until cranberries burst, about 35 minutes. Press through a fine sieve, scraping back of sieve to get all the pulp (you should have about 1 3/4 cups), and discard solids. Cook pulp in pan with butter, sugar, and salt over medium heat, stirring, until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved, about 7 minutes.

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  • Whisk together egg yolks and egg in a medium bowl, then whisk in cranberry mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time. Return mixture to pan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is thickened and coats the back of a wooden spoon, about 8 minutes. Pass through sieve into a bowl (you should have about 3 cups) and press plastic wrap directly on surface of curd to cover. Refrigerate until cold, about 30 minutes. To serve, let guests assemble their own tartlets, or spoon curd into pastry cups and top with whipped cream.

Cook's Notes

Curd can be made 3 days ahead and stored in refrigerator.

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Reviews (8)

70 Ratings
  • 5 11
  • 4 11
  • 3 28
  • 2 16
  • 1 4
Martha Stewart Member
11/28/2014
I made this as written and it turned out perfectly. I put some of it in little tartlet shells (leftover pie crust blind baked) and some was served with brie as an appetizer! Everyone loved it. The leftover curd will be eaten on toast for breakfast...or maybe with a spoon straight out of the refrigerator.
Martha Stewart Member
02/02/2014
I'm a huge fan of lemon curd, so I was just dying to try a curd with cranberries. I added orange zest, and only 1 c of sugar based on other reviews. I was in the mood for a chunky curd, so I didn't strain at all. I love the texture of the fruit pulp, and it made the yield much higher too. I had a pie crust to use in my freezer, so I made one big tart and topped with toasted pecans. I baked in the oven at 350 until bubbly.
Martha Stewart Member
12/10/2013
These little labors of love are worth it! I didn't change anything in the recipe, it set up perfectly and wasn't too sweet. I noticed cranberries this year were a little more tart, so that may have contributed. The pecan cups were a perfect compliment (must be topped with fresh whipping cream) and overall the little tartlets were a great way to offset all the overly sweet Christmas goodies.
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Martha Stewart Member
11/29/2013
Based on the previous reviews, I reduced the sugar to 1 cup and in Step 2 I cooked the cranberries for closer to 20 minutes. The curd set up nicely and had a good flavor. It took much longer to make than listed though because straining the mixture took a long time. I also made the pecan shells to go with it, and those weren't a favorite.
Martha Stewart Member
11/27/2013
How I modified based on other reviews: to simmer the cranberries I used 2/3c orange juice and only 1/4c of water, plus zest of 1 orange. Then I used only 1c of sugar, 3 whole eggs, 3 egg yolks, and the zest from another orange when it all cooked together. It's still just a bit too sweet for me even reducing the sugar that much! But it's a wonderful, luscious curd with these changes :D
Martha Stewart Member
11/24/2013
Made the Cranberry Curd today to go with the pumpkin challah I am baking for Thanksgiving. I read the previous reviews stating that the curd was runny, so I added 2 more egg yolks. Seems to have set up pretty well with the 2 extra yolks. It could probably even use 3 extra yolks. Also agree that it is a tad sweet, will probably cut back some of the sugar next time. Overall, pretty satisfied with the recipe with those couple of changes.
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Martha Stewart Member
11/10/2013
I loved the look of this recipe but it is not a favorite. I found the curd entirely too sweet for my taste, it lost that tart quality and was pleasant red sugar curd. The crusts look beautiful but were entirely too rich for my taste. I would suggest cutting sugar in half for the curd and adding more flour and/or reducing the fat for the crusts. I did find the curd was runny, so you had to eat in one bite. I adore the look of this curd for the holidays and will try to adjust to taste.
Martha Stewart Member
11/09/2013
I'm not finished making the recipe yet, but I have a concern: My curd (in the refrigerator) doesn't seem very thick. I'm wondering if I did something wrong? It coats the back of a wooden spoon, but it's not as thick as, say, the lemon curd I have purchased at the store. I'll let you know how the whole thing turns out!
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