Mini Cherry Gluten-Free Frangipane Tarts

These Mini Cherry Gluten-Free Frangipane Tarts are a summery take on the classic French tart. Made with a crisp, buttery gluten-free crust, and a filling of juicy cherries and a mixed nut frangipane – a blend of almond, coconut, walnut, and pecan flour from Pamela’s Products Nut Flour Blend, these darling little tarts are as delicious as they are cute.

It’s cherry season! I look forward to fresh cherries all year long – the season is so fleeting. I make cherry pies, jam, crisps and crumbles, and whatever else I can think of. But one thing I’ve never thought to make until now is a cherry frangipane tart. Specifically, mini gluten-free frangipane tarts.

We’re quite fond of frangipane tarts of all shapes and sizes, but I think cherry might just have edged out fig for first place. If you’re new to frangipane, it’s a delicious combination of butter, sugar, eggs, nut meal, and flavoring. Typically frangipane is used as a fruit tart filling, but can also be used in other pastries too.

For this recipe, I’ve partnered with my favorite gluten-free brand, Pamela’s Products.

When I’m doing gluten-free baking, I tend to reach for Pamela’s Artisan Flour Blend most often. It takes the guesswork out of baking. It’s versatile enough to be used for anything from tart shells and pie crusts, as you see here, and cookies, cakes, quick breads, and yeasted breads and pastries.

The tart dough is made with a combo of the Artisan Flour and Nut Flour Blends.

The Nut Flour Blend is newer to me – it was just introduced last year, but everything I’ve made thus far has been equally as fantastic. I’ve used it in cookies, quick breads, and crusts so far. When I combine the two blends, it’s pretty much magic.The Nut Flour Blend contains a mix of almond, coconut, pecan, and walnut flours.

The ground nuts add more than flavor, they also add a pleasant texture to cookies and crusts. You know how shortbread has that kind of sandy, melt-in-your-mouth texture? That’s what the nut flour does, but you get the flavor of the nuts too, which is fantastic.

I used Pamela’s Nut Flour Blend in place of the traditional almond flour for the frangipane. I’m pretty sure I’ll never look at frangipane tarts the same way again! The combo of nut flours takes it up a notch.

This recipe may seem daunting at first glance, but making these tarts really just involves adding ingredients to a food processor and putting them together and baking. The result is spectacular. They are very impressive and no one will know how easy they are to make. That’s a plus for me when entertaining. ;)

Now about these cherries. Typically a frangipane tart will include poached fruit, such as pears. But the cherries are so small and tender already, they don’t need any precooking. I found six cherries per tart to be the perfect amount.

And since we’re talking cherries…I have to also tout the virtues of a cherry pitter and putting the wee ones to work pitting cherries with it. It’s one of those “chores” my kids like to fight over. And though you don’t need many cherries for these little gluten-free frangipane tarts, if you’re got a productive cherry pitter doing their job, there will be plenty of cherries to sample while the tarts are baking and cooling.

The verdict on this rendition of one of our favorite tarts was 5 stars, two thumbs up, a gold medal, etc., etc. I’ve never seen tarts disappear so quickly before. That’s a winner in my book!

See my other recipes made with Pamela’s Products here.

Mini Cherry Gluten-Free Frangipane Tarts

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Mini Cherry Gluten-Free Frangipane Tarts

• Total Time: 1 hour 5 mins
• Yield: 6 1x

Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• For crust:
• 1 cup Pamela’s Artisan Flour Blend
• 1 cup Pamela’s Nut Flour Blend
• 2 tablespoons evaporated cane juice (or granulated sugar)
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cut into cubes
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• For filling:
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup evaporated cane juice (or granulated sugar)
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 cup Pamela’s Nut Flour Blend
• 2 tablespoons Pamela’s Artisan Flour Blend
• 3 dozen fresh cherries, pitted
• For serving:
• Confectioner’s sugar, for dusting

Instructions

1. For crust: place Pamela’s Artisan Flour and Nut Flour Blends, sugar, and sea salt into the bowl of a food processor fitted with the chopping blade. Pulse a few times to combine.
2. Scatter the cold butter cubes over the dry ingredients. Pulse a 5-7 times, or until butter is in small pieces with some larger, pea-sized pieces. With motor running on low, pour the beaten egg through the feed hole and process just until dough comes together into a ball. Lay out a piece of parchment or waxed paper on the counter. Turn dough out onto the clean surface and press together to incorporate any dry bits. Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces. (Keep the food processor handy – it’s not necessary to wash it yet.)
3. Grease the bottom and sides of six 4-inch mini tart pans with removable bottoms. Press the dough into the bottom and up the sides of the tart pans. Freeze until firm, about 15-20 minutes.
4. While the crusts are in the freezer, preheat oven to 375°F. Place the chilled crusts on a rimmed baking sheet. Prick the bottoms of the tarts with a fork to help prevent the crusts from puffing up and/or shrinking. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely on the pan.
5. To prepare filling: place the butter and sugar into the food processor. Process until light and fluffy. Stop and scrape sides down as needed. With the motor running, add the eggs, one at a time, through the feed hole. Scrape down sides again, if needed. Add the extracts and sea salt. Process again to combine.
6. Add the Pamela’s Nut Flour and Artisan Flour Blends to the food processor. Process until well-combined, silky, and smooth. Divide the mixture between the mini tart pans. Arrange 6 pitted cherries on top of the filling and press them down a little bit into the filling. The tarts will be full, but will not overflow during baking.
7. Place tarts, still on the baking sheet, in the oven and bake for 18-20 minutes or until the puffing has puffed up around the cherries and is golden. Let cool. Before serving sift confectioner’s sugar over the top. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

• Author: Lindsey Johnson
• Prep Time: 45 mins
• Cook Time: 20 mins
• Category: dessert
• Cuisine: French

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Pamela’s Products, one of my very favorite companies and the brand I use every day in my own home. All opinions and gushing are 100% my own.