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Apricot Tart
Recipe
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This European-style Apricot Tart
shows how good perfectly ripened fruit can taste. Fresh apricots are such
a treat so when we use them in our baking we want a dessert that brings
out their wonderfully sweet and acidic flavor. I believe this tart does
just that. It takes fresh apricots, with their skins still
intact, cuts them into thick wedges, gently tosses them with just sugar and
salt, and arranges them on a platform of buttery crisp pastry. I love how
this tart looks after it is baked, the pastry is a lovely golden brown
color and the apricot wedges are soft with beautifully caramelized tips.
No one will be able to resist a slice of this tart,
especially when served warm with a small scoop of vanilla ice cream.
The pastry used for this
apricot tart
is
made from a mixture of flour, a little sugar, salt, butter, and ice water.
It has a high ratio of fat to flour which gives the pastry its crisp and
crumbly texture and buttery flavor. No tart or pie pan is needed
here, for this is what we call a free form tart. That means the
pastry is rolled out, the fruit is arranged on top, and then the edges of the pastry are folded up and over the fruit.
It is the perfect backdrop for fresh
fruit at its prime. I have used the same technique for this
Peach Tart,
and this Raspberry Tart. The secret to its success is to bake
it in a hot oven so that the pastry bakes and browns quickly and the fruit
softens, yet still retains its shape.
It doesn't seem that long ago that we had to
content ourselves with dried apricots as fresh were almost impossible to
find, unless you were fortunate enough to live near an orchard.
This lovely orange colored stone fruit is native to China but it
eventually made its way to California where most of this fruit is now
grown. When you look at an apricot you can see its resemblance to the
peach. Its has that same round shape, albeit smaller, and fuzzy outer skin which some like to remove,
but I don't, especially for this tart. Both of these fruits also have that
characteristic "suture" that runs from stem to blossom end, which
serves as a guide for cutting the fruit in half to remove its inner seed.
And let us not forget the apricot's flesh, sweet and juicy with a touch of
tanginess that never fails to delight. When buying
apricots, smell
and feel each piece of fruit. They should smell of apricots and feel firm,
yet have a slight give when you press gently on its shoulders. Make sure
there are no bruises, cuts, or soft patches on the apricots.
This recipe is adapted from one of my favorite
cookbooks The Zuni Cafe Cookbook
by Judy Rodgers. |
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Short Crust
Pastry: In a food processor, place the flour, salt, and sugar and process
until combined. Add the butter and process until the mixture resembles coarse
meal (about 15 seconds). Pour 1/8 cup (30 ml) water in a slow, steady stream
through the feed tube until the pastry just holds together when pinched. Add
remaining water, if necessary. Do not process more than about 30 seconds.
Turn the pastry out onto your
work surface, gather it into a ball,
cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for about one hour to
chill the butter and allow the gluten in the flour to relax.
Once the pastry has
chilled, remove from refrigerator and place on a lightly floured surface. Roll
the pastry into a 13 inch (32 cm) square.
To prevent the pastry from sticking to the counter and to ensure uniform
thickness, keep lifting up and turning the pastry a quarter turn as you roll
(always roll from the center of the pastry outwards to get uniform thickness).
Transfer the pastry to a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Cover and place in
the refrigerator while you prepare the apricots.
Apricot
Filling: Wash the apricots. Cut the apricots
following the suture from stem to blossom end and then up the opposite side.
Gently twist the two halves of the apricot and it should easily separate. Remove
the seed and cut each half into two or three wedges (depending on size). Place the
wedges of apricots in a large bowl
and season with a pinch of salt. Then add the granulated white sugar and toss
gently to combine. Arrange the apricot wedges evenly on
the pastry (cut side up), leaving about a two inch (5 cm) wide border. Scrape any remaining
sugar from the bowl and sprinkle over the apricots. Gently fold the edges of the
pastry up and over the apricots, pleating as necessary. Make sure to seal any
cracks in the pastry.
Bake the tart in a preheated
405 degree F (205 degree C) oven for about 35-45 minutes or until the pastry is
golden brown. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Best served warm,
with vanilla ice cream.
Makes one - 11 inch
(26 cm) tart.
Sources:
Rodgers, Judy.
The Zuni Cafe Cookbook. W.W. Norton & Company. New York: 2002.
Waters, Alice.
Chez Panisse Fruit. Harper Collins Publishers. New York: 2002. |
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Short Crust Pastry:
1 1/4 cups (175 grams)
all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon (2 grams) salt
1 tablespoon (14 grams) granulated
white sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) (113 grams)
unsalted butter, chilled, and cut into 1 inch (2.5 cm) pieces
1/8 to 1/4 cup (30 - 60 ml) ice
water
Apricot Filling:
about 1 1/2 pounds (680
grams) fresh ripe apricots (8 large or 14 small apricots)
1/3 - 1/2 cup (65 - 100
grams) granulated white sugar (or to taste)
1/8 teaspoon kosher
salt
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