Kersenvlaai (Limburg Cherry Tart)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •28cm shallow vlaai tin or tart tin
• •Rolling pin
• •Small saucepan
• •Pastry brush

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the dough

   Stir the flour, yeast, sugar, and salt together in a bowl. Add the lukewarm milk, softened butter, and about two thirds of the beaten egg, keeping the rest for glazing. Knead for 8 to 10 minutes until the dough is soft, elastic, and only lightly tacky. It should feel like bread dough that has learned some manners.

   If the dough clings fiercely to your fingers, add flour one tablespoon at a time. Vlaai dough should stay tender; a dry dough bakes into a crust that sulks.
2. 2

   Let it rise

   Cover the bowl and let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled, about 60 to 75 minutes. Butter a 28cm shallow vlaai tin or tart tin while you wait. The dough is ready when a fingertip pressed into it leaves a soft dent that slowly fills back in.

3. 3

   Thicken the cherries

   Put the cherries and sugar in a saucepan and warm gently until the fruit releases its juice. Stir the cornstarch with the cherry juice, water, or kirsch to make a smooth slurry, then add it to the pan. Cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes until the juices turn glossy and thick enough to coat the cherries. Stir in the lemon juice and let the filling cool to lukewarm.

4. 4

   Line the tin

   Heat the oven to 200C. Roll out about two thirds of the dough into a round large enough to line the tin with a little overhang. Lay it in gently and press it into the edges without stretching. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the base; they are not decoration, they are insurance against a wet bottom.

5. 5

   Fill and lattice

   Spoon the cooled cherry filling into the dough shell and spread it evenly. Roll the remaining dough thinly and cut it into strips about 1.5cm wide. Lay the strips across the cherries in a lattice, trimming the edges and pressing them to the rim. A Limburg baker may make the lattice neater than you will. Let him. Your table will still go quiet when the first slice is cut.

6. 6

   Bake the vlaai

   Brush the lattice and rim with the reserved beaten egg. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the dough is golden, the edges pull slightly from the tin, and the cherries show thick, dark bubbles between the strips. Cool in the tin for 15 minutes, then lift out carefully and let it settle before slicing. The filling needs that pause or it will run like gossip.

Chef Tips

• •Use sour cherries if you can find them: morellen or krieken. Sweet cherries make a pretty tart, but they miss the bright acidity that gives kersenvlaai its voice.
• •The tide sets the menu, and so does the calendar. Fresh sour cherries belong to early summer; outside the season, good jarred sour cherries are the honest Limburg kitchen's answer.
• •Drain jarred cherries well, but keep a little juice for the cornstarch slurry. That juice carries more cherry character than plain water.
• •Serve the vlaai the day it is baked, at room temperature, with coffee. Whipped cream is common enough at the table, but it should sit beside the slice, not bury the cherries.

Advance Preparation

• •The cherry filling can be cooked up to 2 days ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator; bring it back to room temperature before filling the dough.
• •The dough can rise slowly overnight in the refrigerator after kneading; let it stand at room temperature for 30 minutes before rolling.
• •Best eaten the day it is baked. Leftovers keep 1 day covered at room temperature, though the base softens as the cherries continue their quiet work.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 120g)