Way back when I was a Daring Baker, I made a Bakewell Tart, which has a shortbread crust, jam over that, then a frangipane...an almond filling sort of like a sponge cake. It was delicious.
A couple of times in the last 10 years I've also posted about an apricot tart that I love making. I use either a sweet cookie type dough or a ready made pie crust, either canned or fresh and peeled apricots, and a frangipane that's just a little denser than the Bakewell Tart.
This week I made a tart that was a combination of those two. It had a pie crust shaped into a tart pan and blind baked, a jam layer over that for flavor and to keep the tart bottom from getting soggy (the Bakewell part, along with the frangipane), fresh peeled and pitted apricots from our local farmstand...soo fragrant!...plus the denser frangipane. Except for having too much filling, (which went over the top of the shell and baked on, making it impossible to remove the tart pan sides and making it difficult to serve) it was an amazing combination and will be repeated.
I'm sure that you can make this with canned apricots, and you can use any flavor of jam that you like. If you have almond flour or meal you are half way to a wonderful filling! If you don't have almond flour or meal, use the same weight of almonds and grind them to a fine powder in your food processor, using some of the sugar to buffer the grinding so that you don't end up with a paste of almonds. Be sure to use the rest of the sugar in the filling...it's easy to forget.
This really is a great way to bake with apricots. I enjoy fresh apricots as is, but I think that cooking them really allows their awesome flavor to really shine. Because you get big pieces of the apricot in this tart, the tartness and robust flavor are fully experienced, enhanced by the sweet jam (mixed berry in this case) and the moist but not too sweet almond filling. Sweetie really liked the crust, too. It added just the perfect extra texture to the tart. A winner!
Bakewell Style Apricot Tart
Serves 8
1 pre-made pie crust like Pillsbury ReadyCrust or your favorite sweet tart dough for 1 crust
Unroll the pie crust disc and place in a 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom. Fold t he excess dough in on itself at the sides, then press the double thickness of dough into the tart pan ridges. Press firmly until the dough reaches the top of the pan sides. If a little goes higher than the sides, remove it and save to patch any holes after initial baking. Keep the excess dough in the fridge.
Prick all over and freeze for at least 30 minutes, but longer is O.K.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Put the rack in the center of the oven.
Remove tart shell from freezer. Spray a sheet of foil with cooking spray/oil and put, oil side down on the tart, pressing down to mold the foil to the tart shape.
Bake for 25 minutes. Remove the foil carefully and use the back of a spoon to gently press down any puffed crust. If necessary, use the extra dough from the fridge to patch any holes, then bake another few minutes. Let crust cool.
Prepare the frangipane filling, jam and apricots:
3 tablespoons soft butter or margarine
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
2 large eggs
3/4 cup almond flour or mixed nut flour (about 85 grams)
about 1/2 cup jam, preferably a berry or mixed berry jam
10 apricot halves, peeled and patted dry
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
To make the filling: Beat together the butter, salt, sugar, flour, and almond extract.
Beat in the eggs, then add the almond flour, stirring just to combine.
To assemble the tart: Spread the jam evenly over the cooled crust. Spread about half the frangipane filling over the jam, using an offset spatula to even the top, if necessary.
Place the apricot halves in a pattern on top of the filling, pressing them down gently so the bottom of the fruit is covered. There may not be room for all of the halves...save any left for another use. Add as much of the rest of the filling as will fit in the tart without going over the sides. Place the tart on a pizza pan or other large baking sheet to catch any drips.
Bake the tart in the preheated 350 degree F oven for 45 to 40 minutes, until the top is lightly browned. Filling will puff up around the apricots. Cool slightly or completely before serving.
No comments :
Post a Comment