Apricot and Almond Tart

The combination of apricots and almonds with a touch of honey creates a delicate burst of flavors to quench the most discerning of sweet palates.
Macerating fresh apricots with sugar or slow poaching in a sugar syrup will enhance their subtle flavor without overcooking them.
This apricot and almond tart combines all of the above to create a mouth watering treat, whether its for a coffee time snack or as a dessert for a dinner party.

Short Pastry
75g unsalted butter at room temperature
2-3 egg yolks
25g Icing sugar
150g Plain Flour
1-2tbsp water, optional
Rub together the flour, sugar and butter until the mix resembles fine breadcrumbs.
Add the egg yolks and mix with enough water to make a smooth soft pastry.
Wrap in clingfilm and chill for about 30 minutes to firm the dough.
Roll dough out thinly to line the base and sides of your tart tin ( this mix is enough for a deep 8inch tart tin) If you find that your pastry tears easily you can patch it with your fingertips. Prick the base slightly with a fork, line with parchment paper and weigh down with baking beans and bake blind at 170c/150c fan/ gas 3 for 25 minutes. Remove the parchment and beans, bake for a further 10 minutes until crisp. Remove from oven and leave to cool. At this stage the base will store chilled for 3days.

Fruit filling
8-10 Fresh apricots, halved and de-stoned
Handful of sugar, adjust depending on the sweetness of the apricots
2tbsp honey (for a more enhanced flavor you could use brandy or Grand Marnier)
Place apricots in a bowl and toss with the sugar. Drizzle with the honey or alcohol and leave for at least an hour to infuse the flavors and soften the apricots. I find its best to do this the night before to get maximum macerating time.
Drain the apricots and leave to dry for a while, making sure to reserve the liquid for use later.

 Frangipane filling
115g Butter, softened
115g Honey
100g Ground almonds
2 eggs
1/4 cup Double Cream
Whisk together the butter, honey and ground almonds until smooth.
Add the cream but stir it in rather than whisking so as not to emulsify, this will make it rise during baking ( if you do want a slight rise during baking then whisk slowly for a few seconds)
OR
You can make the frangipane filling from my earlier post The Bakewell Tart Experience, which is a more cake like frangipane.

Either frangipane filling works just as well however I find that the creamy filling creates a better tart for cold/warm dinner dessert while the cake frangipane makes a better hot dessert especially if served with custard or a coffee time snack

To assemble the tart, arrange the apricot halves on the base of the tart crust and pour the creamy mixture over the top. Bake at 180c/170c fan for about 25 - 30 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Longer baking time is required for the cake frangipane, check by using the skewer test during cooking

Cake Frangipane Tart

You can also make individual tarts rather than one whole tart, this recipe will give 8-10 good sized tarts. For parties etc you can make them smaller and get about 20-24 mini tarts. For these you will need to cut the fruit smaller, I tend to quarter the apricots and then slice each quarter into half again or slice thinly and arrange on top of the frangipane. Making sure to push the slices down into the frangipane slightly.

Individual Tarts

You can use this recipe with other fruits such as peaches, nectarines, plums and any other stone fruit that is in season.

This is a great recipe for a dinner dessert as it can be prepared well in advance before being assembled and baked on the day/evening.

Serve warm simply with the reserved macerating liquid, ice cream, creme fraiche or custard.

Enjoy!!!