Recipe: Gareth Whitton’s Festive Tart Will Stop the Whole Jolly Show

Need tart tips? There’s really only one guy you should call. 

That is, of course, Gareth Whitton, whose pastry prowess saw him win the first season of Dessert Masters and write a whole cookbook on the subject. 

But really, it was Melbourne’s Tarts Anon that first put Whitton on the map. It’s there you’ll find the former Dinner by Heston pastry chef’s imagination in full flight – via desserts that stretch the definition of the tart.

This festive number is certainly in that league: layered with spiced gingerbread, marinated cherries, and a silky gingerbread Chantilly cream. “This tart riffs on the familiar flavours of the festive season – the warmth of gingerbread, the spice of mulled wine and the sweetness of cherries,” says Whitton. 

Though there are a few steps involved – don’t let them deter you. The mulled wine, marinated cherries and Chantilly can be prepped well in advance. And, once the components are ready, the tart itself is “incredibly simple to piece together... It’s one of those desserts that looks impressive but comes together with minimal fuss, making it perfect for entertaining.”

Gareth Whitton’s festive showstopper tart

Serves: 6 to 8
Preparation time: 6 hours
Cooking time: 1 hour

Ingredients

Mulled wine

700ml grenache (or other red wine)
270g white sugar
Zest of 1 orange
1 cinnamon quill
1 whole star anise
4 cardamom pods
2 whole cloves

Marinated cherries

450g (1 tin) cherries, drained
1 litre mulled wine (from above)
600g white sugar

Cherry compote

500ml used mulled wine (strained from cherries)
60g sugar
1g citric acid (or lemon juice)
15g cornflour
450g marinated cherries

Sweet shortcrust pastry

165g plain flour
85g cold butter, diced
2g salt
40g cold water

Gingerbread cake batter

170g melted butter
3 large eggs (approx 165g)
155g almond meal
100g white sugar
105g brown sugar
55g plain flour
3g salt
2g baking powder
Spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, cardamom, ginger 

Gingerbread Chantilly cream

6g gelatine
260g cream (1)
260g cream (2)
100g white chocolate
4g brown sugar
2g salt
Spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, cardamom, ginger
Vanilla extract

Method

Make the mulled wine by placing all the ingredients into a large pot. Bring to a boil, then immediately turn off the heat. Let the wine cool and infuse for at least 2 hours before using.

Next, drain the cherries from the tin and set aside. Measure 1000ml of mulled wine and add to a pot with 600g of sugar. Bring mulled wine and sugar to a boil and cool. Pour 200g of the cooled liquid over 260g of cherries and marinate at room temperature for at least 2 hours before using. (Marinate in the fridge if making ahead.)

To make the compote, strain the marination liquid from the cherries – about 500ml. In a separate bowl, mix a small amount with cornflour to make a slurry. To a shallow pan, add the rest of the marination liquid, sugar, citric acid and bring to a boil. Whisk in the slurry and cook until thickened. Add 450g of the marinated cherries, mix gently and cool.

Preheat a fan-forced oven to 160°C. Make the shortcrust pastry by mixing flour, butter and salt. Add water until combined and chill for one hour. Once chilled, roll the pastry to 3mm thick and line a 25cm tart tin. Blind bake for 30-40 minutes until golden and cool completely.

If you’ve turned the oven off, preheat again to 160°C while you make the gingerbread cake batter. Mix all the dry ingredients and set aside. Next, whisk eggs and both sugars together until smooth, then slowly fold in the butter and dry mix. Pour the mixture into the cooled tart shell with 180g of marinated cherries. Bake for 35 minutes until golden. Cool.

To make the Chantilly, first bloom gelatine in a small dish. Next, heat the first cream with sugar, spices and vanilla. Add the gelatine and chocolate, and stir until smooth. Fold in the second cream and chill for 6 hours. Whip to soft peaks before using.

Pipe whipped gingerbread Chantilly over top of the cooled tart and spoon over cherry compote to finish. Serve chilled or at room temperature.