For nut lovers, there is no better dessert than a walnut tart, and one of the great things about it is that you can always find high-quality walnuts—no searching for a ripe peach or waiting for strawberry season. The recipe is so common that it is claimed by nearly every region of France and is found in varying forms in other parts of Europe as well; everyone, it seems, has his or her own version. This, of course, is my favorite; if you can find honey made from lavender, it’s even better.

　　

Ingredients

makes 8 servings

　　1 unbaked Sweet Tart Pastry (page 654) shell in a 9-inch tart pan

　　Butter for the dish

　　1 1/4 cups sugar

　　8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter

　　1/2 cup heavy cream

　　1/4 cup honey

　　2 cups roughly chopped walnuts (you should have large chunks)

　　

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Tear off a piece of foil twice as large as the crust. Fold it in half and smear it with butter; lay the buttered side onto the crust. Weight the foil with a pile of dried beans or rice (these can be reused for the same purpose), pie weights, or a tight-fitting skillet or saucepan—anything that will sit flat on the surface. Bake for 12 minutes, then remove the foil and continue to bake at 350°F, until the crust is a beautiful shade of brown. Remove and let cool on a rack while you prepare the filling (turn off the oven).

　　

Step 2

Put the sugar and 1 tablespoon water in a heavy 6- or 8-inch saucepan or deep skillet over medium heat. Cook, gently shaking the pan occasionally, until the sugar melts and turns light golden, about 10 minutes. Turn the heat to low, then carefully add the butter and cream—the mixture will bubble up—and cook, stirring, until the butter melts and the mixture is uniform. Stir in the honey and the walnuts, cool a bit, then spread on the crust. Refrigerate for about an hour before serving.

　　The Best Recipes in the World by Mark Bittman. © 2005 by Mark Bittman. Published by Broadway Books. All Rights Reserved.MARK BITTMAN is the author of the blockbuster The Best Recipes in the World (Broadway, 2005) and the classic bestseller How to Cook Everything, which has sold more than one million copies. He is also the coauthor, with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of Simple to Spectacular and Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef. Mr. Bittman is a prolific writer, makes frequent appearances on radio and television, and is the host of The Best Recipes in the World, a 13-part series on public television. He lives in New York and Connecticut.