Strawberry Hazelnut Macaroon Tart (Passover)

Last night my mom had 20 people over her house for Passover Sedar. Family, Friends and Friends of Family all stopped in. I decided this year I was going to make a TON of dessert. 5 Different Recipes to be exact. I’m going to blog each recipe separately so its easier to find and work with them.

I’m going to start with this Strawberry tart because it was the biggest hit and definitely my favorite. I prepared the crust and the filling the day before and I assembled in the morning. I should have waited till just before the sedar to assemble as it got a little drippy, though I think that might have been a good thing, to make the crust more manageable. This was sweet, tart, savory.

I found the recipe on Bon Appetit and made just a few changes.

Ingredients

Filling

• 2 12-ounce baskets strawberries, stem removed, diced
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3 1/2 tablespoons Passover brandy
• 1 1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• Pinch of ground cloves

Crust

• Matzo cake meal
• 2 cups husked toasted hazelnuts - I roasted and removed the skin, and added a little extra salt.
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• Pinch of ground cloves
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
• 3 1-pint baskets strawberries, stems removed, thinly sliced

Instructions

Filling

• Combine all ingredients in heavy large skillet.
  
• Stir over high heat until sugar dissolves and mixture comes to boil.
  
• Boil until very thick, stirring frequently, about 18 minutes. Cool in pan. Transfer to small bowl, cover and refrigerate. Good for up to two days
  

Crust

• Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F.
• Line 11-inch tart pan with removable bottom with heavy-duty foil, pressing firmly into scalloped sides of pan. Grease foil and dust with matzo cake meal.
  
• Finely grind nuts, sugar, salt and cloves in processor.
  
• Add egg and extract and process until mixture just holds together. Reserve 1/2 cup dough for another use. Using moistened fingertips, press remaining dough onto bottom and up sides of prepared pan. (I also dipped my hands in matza meal which helped with the stickiness.)
  
• Bake until crust is golden, crinkled and feels dry, about 13 minutes.
•  Cool crust completely in pan on rack. Remove tart pan sides. Carefully peel foil off crust. Return crust to pan. Wrap tightly and store at room temperature. Good for one day
  
• Spread filling over crust. Starting at edge of tart, cover tart with berry slices in overlapping concentric circles, with first circle leaning against crust edge. Can be prepared 3 hours ahead. Chill.
• Remove tart from pan. Cut into wedges and serve.