This Plum and Frangipane Tart has a buttery shortcrust pastry, that’s filled with an Almond Frangipane and fresh Plums. With a scattering of flaked almonds for good measure.
20drops of high strength natural almond flavouring
2tbsplain flour
100gramsground almonds
5 - 6medium sized plumsde-stoned and sliced in half
handful of flaked almonds
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 170°C.
Grease and flour a rectangular loose-bottomed tart tin 36cm x 12cm x 3cm (14" x 4¾" x 1”)
Shake off any excess flour.
Make the Pastry
Place the flour, butter, and sugar into a food processor and pulse until you have fine breadcrumbs. If you don’t have a food processor, use your fingertips instead. It’ll take a little longer. Which is another reason to make sure the butter is fridge cold.
Add the egg and one tablespoon of very cold water. Pulse again until the pastry dough comes together.
If the dough hasn’t come together, gradually add the remaining water until it does. You may not need it all.
Roll the pastry out thinly onto a lightly floured surface. Line your tin, (Fig 1 in the post) allowing a little pastry to hang over the sides to accommodate any shrinkage while it rests.
Place in the fridge to rest for about 30 minutes. This is essential if you have a warm kitchen. It helps to relax the pastry before baking.
Make the Frangipane
Beat the butter and sugar together until light and creamy.
Add the drops of almond flavouring to the eggs, giving it a little mix. This will ensure the almond flavouring is dispersed throughout the frangipane filling. Add this to the butter and sugar mix along with the flour. Mix until well combined.
Add the ground almonds and mix until well combined.
Take the pastry case out of the fridge and cut off any excess pastry. To do this, (Fig 2 in the post) pass the rolling pin over the edges of the tin.
Spread the frangipane pastry cream filling evenly over the pastry base.
Decorate with the plums, pressing them down slightly as you go. Top with flaked almonds. (Fig 3 in the post).
Bake in the centre of the oven for 35 – 40 minutes or until the surface of the frangipane becomes nice and golden. The pastry should have a nice golden colour too.
Leave to cool in the tin a little before serving.
Notes
Baker's Tips
When making the pastry, keep the butter as cold as you can. Placing the pastry in the fridge gives it a chance to rest before baking.
Grate your fridge cold butter into a bowl and place in the freezer for 20 mins before you start to make the pastry. This will help keep everything cold. Especially if you are using your fingertips to rub the butter and flour together.
Use a good quality Almond Extract. This will enhance the flavour of the Ground Almonds. Which generally doesn't have much flavour to it.
Alternative seasonal fruits can be used, such as blackberries in autumn and rhubarb in early summer.
Keyword Easy Pastry, frangipane, pastry cream, Plum Tart