Frangipane Fruit Tart

This, my friends, is one of my favorite things I've ever made. Ever.

It's the epitome of desserts I love because it is both rich tasting and refreshing at the same time! Plus, it has custard and of course, anything that has custard in it is a win in my book. Let me just emphasize again that this fruit tart is amazing; not only does it taste amazing, it's literally breathtaking to look at. It starts with a chewy and sweet sugar cookie crust, which is then filled with the most fragrant and delicious frangipane filling. On top of that is a layer of creamy vanilla custard that helps keep the whole tart moist and enables the fruit to stick to the tart. If you can imagine anything more this tart needs, it is then topped with a medley of fresh fruit and beautified with an apricot glaze that makes it even more stunning to look at!

I know this sounds really tedious, having five components and all, but the way I make this tart (using shortcuts) makes it do-able and when you take a bite of this gorgeous thing you just made, you'll start thinking of when you're gonna make it again and again! I've made it almost 10 times already... not joking!

French Fruit Tart

Yields: 2 9" tarts

Original frangipane recipe here.

http://gourmeted.com/2010/07/28/blueberry-frangipane-tart/

For the crust:

1 package dry mix sugar cookie dough

+ the ingredients needed to make it, according to the package

For the custard layer:

1 small package of French vanilla pudding

1 cup whole milk

3/4 cup heavy cream

1 tsp. vanilla 

 For the frangipane layer:

8 tbsn. unsalted butter, softened

2/3 cup powdered sugar

1 cup almond meal or ground almonds

4 tsp. cornstarch

1 large egg

1 large egg yolk

1 tsp. almond extract

For the glaze:

1/4 cup apricot jam or orange marmalade

2 tbsn. water

For the filling (any assortment of the below will work):

raspberries

golden raspberries

blueberries

strawberries

blackberries

kiwi

peaches

mango

mandarin oranges

First, prepare the frangipane filing. Combine the butter and sugar in a food processor and pulse until smooth. Add the ground almonds and pulse to blend. Add the cornstarch and pulse. Mix in the egg, egg yolk and almond extract. Scrape into a bowl and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before using. 

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Prepare the sugar cookie mix according to the directions on the package. Divide the dough among two 9" tart pans with removable bottoms. Spread evenly along the entire surface and up the sides (don't worry if it looks thin - it will puff up during baking). Bake for 8 - 10 minutes until just barely golden. Set aside to cool a bit. Once room temperature, divide the frangipane filling among the two par-baked tart shells and bake for 10 - 15 minutes until slightly puffed and golden brown. Remove to a rack to cool completely.

To prepare the custard, combine all of the ingredients into a bowl and whisk for 3 - 5 minutes until thickened and smooth. Let sit in the refrigerator for at least 10 minutes to chill and thicken up some more. Once thickened, use a offset spatula to divide the custard among the two tarts, spreading the custard over the entire surface in a smooth layer. Top with your assortment of fruit in any manner that you like. To make the glaze, heat all of the ingredients over medium heat in a small saucepan. Stir to combine. Once thinned, remove from the heat and use a pastry brush to glaze the entire surface of the tart. Chill the tart for at least 1 hour before serving. Enjoy!

Apple Frangipane Tart

Mmmm I love winter time. It's my favorite time of the year, when the air is just a bit chilly and the leaves have started to fall. Lately though, living in California, has provided little winter for me! So sad. Anyways this tart perfectly pairs with this season.

Tartlette originally makes this tart mini-sized but I decided to make one large tart for my family Christmas party. Though it does seem like there are a lot of steps, once broken apart, this tart was incredibly easy to put together. I made the crust one day and pre-baked it, then another day filled it with the frangipane and baked it, and baked and assembled the apples. This really is a gorgeous tart. It was a big hit too! The combination of honey-roasted apples and almond was just delicious! Make sure not to over bake the frangipane though, because you want it to be moist!

I arranged mine like a flower, but you can do it any other way:

I used Granny Smith Apples:

Apples and fall: the perfect combination

Apple Frangipane Tart

Yields: 8 servings

Adapted from original recipe, which can be found here.

For the sable dough:

1 stick butter, room temperature

3/4 cup powdered sugar

1 large egg

1 1/2 cups flour

2 tbsn. cornstarch

pinch of salt

For the frangipane cream:

1 stick butter, softened

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 cup ground almond

seeds from 1 vanilla bean or 2 tsp. vanilla paste or extract

2 eggs

1/4 cup heavy cream

For the honey roasted apples:

4 medium apples

1/2 cup honey

2 tbsn. apricot jam or orange marmalade + 1 tbsn. water, microwaved for 15 seconds (to glaze, optional)

To make the dough, in a mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and mix until combined. Add the flour, cornstarch and salt and mix briefly to incorporate. Dump the whole mixture onto a lightly floured board and gather dough into a smooth ball. Do not work dough while in mixture or it will toughen up. Flatten dough into a disk and wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour. When dough is nice and cold, roll out on a lightly floured board or in between sheets of plastic. You need half the amount of dough to make the tartelettes. Other half can be kept in the fridge for up to 5 days or frozen, well wrapped for 3 months. Cut out rounds with a 3 inch pastry ring. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake at 350 F for 8 - 10 minutes. Let cool.

Preheat oven to 350 F. Peel, core and cut the apples in thin slices. Lay them on a couple of parchment paper lined baking sheets and drizzle all with honey. Bake for 10 - 15 minutes until golden, let cool.

Place butter, sugar, almond powder, vanilla and eggs in a large bowl and whisk until smooth. Add cream and stir it in instead of whisking so you don't emulsify it. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Place 8 baked rounds of dough into 8 pastry rings, divide the cream evenly among the rings and bake for 20 minutes at 350 F. Let cool. Once cool, remove tarts from rings and arrange apples decoratively on top. If desired, you can glaze the tart. Enjoy!

Close up of the apples:

An apple a day keeps the doctor away: