Way back in August, the Tuesdays with Dorie group baked the Cherry Crumb Tart from Baking Chez Moi.  The recipe calls for a frangipane-like filling made with either almond or hazelnut flour, fresh red cherries and a topping of  cardamom scented struesel.  Put together, it is a perfect marriage of flavors, especially if you are lucky enough to find tart red cherries.  Unfortunately, by the time August rolls around, cherry season is done and while you may still find some dark sweet cherries, the tart red ones are impossible to locate.  Honestly, I have not had luck finding the tart ones fresh, even at the peak of season and my only option ends up being a canned product unless I want to spring for a mail order bulk purchase requiring overnight shipping.  More than once, I have found myself dreaming of a tree in my garden, laden with plump, juicy, tart red cherries.
Rather than letting the disappointment stop me, I chose to make the tart using rhubarb.  And yes, rhubarb is another plant that is out of season in August but luckily for me, I can find sliced rhubarb in the freezer section of the grocery store.  Because it is just the two of us here, I only made half of the recipe and it was enough to make three 4″ tarts.
Rhubarb is one of those foods that while subtle in flavor, it can pack a tart punch and add a huge amount of moisture making it a great substitute for the hard to find red cherries.  The rhubarb released its juices and blended with the almond filling to make a custard like filling.  As far as I am concerned, I can live with rhubarb standing in for the cherries, for now, at least until I get that tree planted in the garden…

Do yourself a favor, pick up a copy of Baking Chez Moi and bake along with us, or just bake from the book!  To see how the other bakers fared, check the original post from August or the rewind post.