Cranberry Curd Tart

Bright holiday flavor with a buttery graham crust.

When it comes to combining good looks and great flavor, a fresh cranberry curd tart recipe takes the, ahem, cake. Here, a silky, sweet-tart custard combines with graham crust for an exceptional dessert. 

This recipe makes a deliciously tart, sweet dessert. Plus, with its stunning color, this tart has a real “wow” factor as well. Tart and bright, the silky cranberry custard gets paired with a graham cracker crust for a new essential holiday dessert.

All About This Tart Recipe

This holiday cranberry curd tart recipe owes its genesis to the New York Times’s cranberry curd tart recipe from David Tanis. David Tanis is a “cook’s cook.” An alum of Alice Waters’s Chez Panisse, David Tanis expertly creates elevated, seasonal home cooking that seems to elevate produce without being fussy or complicated. His cookbooks are excellent.

I adapted the NYT cranberry curd tart recipe by swapping out the crust. The original recipe calls for a hazelnut tart crust which, while no doubt delicious, is fussy and a bit time consuming to make. Instead, I use a graham cracker crust. Why?

1. A graham cracker crust is practically effortless, and
2. The sweet,  buttery wheat flavor, with just a hint of salt, makes an outstanding complement to the tart cranberry custard.

The “rightness” of a graham cracker crust makes sense here. This is a bright, almost citrus-sweet curd with great tartness. In other words, key lime pie‘s cousin. And we all know that key lime pie loves a graham cracker crust.

Recipe Notes: Cranberry Curd Tart

The only arguable downside of using a graham cracker crust for this cranberry curd tart is that it will crumble and thus needs to be served in the tart pan. I see no problem with this. A standard nine-inch pie plate will be perfect, and pretty porcelain tart pans abound.

But if you want to serve a tart that stands on its own without being in a dish, try this pâte sucrée tart shell. (And make some butter cookies with the scraps while you’re at it!)

How to Make the Cranberry Custard

Essentially, all you do is you combine strained cranberry sauce with butter and eggs to make the custard, then let it set up for 10 minutes in the oven. Easy! But there are a few tips.

• Make sure to stir the custard a lot once it goes on the stove to finish. You do not want bits of scrambled egg. (But if that does happen, just strain it.)
• This cranberry curd tart will keep in the refrigerator for several days, making it a perfect make-ahead holiday dessert recipe. Bring it to cool room temperature before serving for the best flavor.

Love this cranberry curd tart recipe? You’ll also like:

• Fresh Key Lime Pie
• Mixed Berry Pound Cake
• Cranberry Orange Loaf Cake

Print Recipe

Cranberry Curd Tart

A bright, silky cranberry custard tart with graham cracker crust, fit for the holidays and easy to make.

Prep Time40 mins

Cook Time20 mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keywords:: christmas, cranberry, dessert, graham cracker crust, holiday, key lime pie, tart

Servings: 1 x 9" tart

Ingredients

For the Graham Cracker Crust

• 1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs (from 9 crackers, or one sleeve)
• 5 tablespoons melted, unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

For the Cranberry Curd and to Finish

• 12 ounces (1 bag) fresh cranberries, picked over
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 orange, peeled and juiced
• 4 ounces (1 stick; 8 tablespoons) butter, softened
• 2 eggs
• 2 egg yolks

Instructions

For the Graham Cracker Crust

• Preheat the oven to 375°F. Make the graham cracker crumbs by pulsing them in a food processor with the sugar and salt until finely ground. Pour into a mixing bowl. Add the melted butter to the graham cracker crumb mixture. Stir to combine fully.
• Gently but firmly press the graham crumb mixture into the bottom and sides of the pie plate.

  TIP: Depending on the size and depth of your tart pan or pie plate, you may not need all of the graham cracker crumbs. Get a nice, even layer, but don't make it too thick.

  PRO TIP: Use the bottom of a measuring cup as a flat surface when pressing the crumbs into place.
• Bake for 15 minutes, until toasted brown. Let cool to room temperature. (Can be made one or two days in advance and kept, wrapped at room temperature.)

For the Cranberry Curd and to Finish

• Lower the oven to 350°F. In a medium pot, heat the sugar, cranberries, orange juice, and orange peel. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the cranberries have popped and softened and the mixture has become a jammy sauce, about 10 minutes.
• Discard the orange peel. Spoon the cranberry sauce into a fine mesh strainer set over a clean mixing bowl. Use a spoon to gently press and stir the liquids through the strainer. Take care not to burn yourself on the hot sauce!

  Discard the seeds and solids. Whisk the butter into the warm cranberry liquid/gel.
• In a separate mixing bowl, beat the eggs and egg yolks together. Whisk about a third of the strained cranberry into the eggs to temper, then add the tempered eggs into the rest of the strained cranberry. Whisk to combine.
• Return the cranberry custard to the sauce pot. (Wipe clean if necessary.) Cook over medium-low heat, stirring, until thickened and large bubbles form, about 5 to 10 minutes.
• Cool the curd to room temperature by putting the pot in an ice bath and stirring, or by pouring the curd into a wide bowl or casserole pan and stirring. It will have cooled enough when steam no longer comes off the curd.
• Pour the cooled curd into the pie shell and smooth with an offset spatula. Bake for 10 minutes to set the curd. Cool on a rack.

  Store at room temperature for up to 24 hours, or in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Bring to cool room temperature to serve.