Fruit frangipane tart

This tart is similar to the pear tart that I made earlier. I prepared this tart with a different crust and decorated it with different types of berries and fruits, which gave it more acidity and freshness. You could, if you want to, give the fruits an apricot jam wash on top.

Crust (pâte brisee):
1 cup flour
100 g unsalted cold butter
3 tbs cold water
1/2 tsp salt

Almond filling (frangipane):
125 g unsalted butter
1/2 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
3/4 cup ground almonds
1 tbs flour
1 tsp vanilla extract/vanilla sugar

Fruits:
Kiwi, strawberries, nektarines, raspberries, etc. (anything of your choice)

Glaze:
Apricot jam or gelatine-water (optional)

The crust should be made first. In another large cold, steel bowl, mix the flour with salt. Slice cold butter (5-6 pieces) and cut it into the dry ingredients with a fork or use your hands. Make sure all of the flour is mixed with the butter. Pour cold water and use your hand to pat together the crust. Wrap it up in a plastic sheet and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Alternatively, you could use a store-bought tart/pie crust.

Meanwhile prepare the almond filling. You can either buy blanched almonds or blanch them yourself to prepare the almond filling called frangipane. If you are going to blanch the almonds, it is best done a day ahead. To blanch the almonds, bring some water to boil and boil the almonds for a couple of minutes. Keep the almonds in the water because it's difficult to peel off the skin when they become dry. Peel of the almonds with your hands. Let the almonds dry up on a towel or some tissue paper overnight.

Slice the almonds before grinding. It will be difficult to grind them coarsely if they are whole. Grind the almonds together with the flour, to get the right coarse consistency. Put the ground almonds aside. Beat butter and sugar in a bowl. Add the eggs one at a time, and beat in between. Lastly add the ground almond and the vanilla extract/sugar and mix with a spoon. Place the filling in the fridge covered (so that it doesn't pick any smells).

Roll out the crust on a well floured, preferably cold surface with a floured kitchen roller (this is very important, otherwise the dough will break and get sticky easily). The cold surface is also necessary so that the butter does not start to melt. Don't roll it out too thin. Carefully lift the tart bottom with the roller and place it over the pie plate. Cut it neatly and press the crust carefully so that it is steady. The tart crust has a tendency to "shrink" in the oven, so don't cut the edges too short. Stick the pie bottom with a fork and place a baking paper over the tart crust and fill it with beans to help the tart keep its shape. Place the tart in a preheated oven and bake at 150 C (around 300 F) for about 20 minutes, in the lower parts of the oven.

Take the crust out of the oven. Let it cool. Spoon in the almond filling and level it out with a spoon or knife. Bake the tart in the lower parts of a preheated oven for about 45 minutes at 160 C (around 320 F). Let the tart cool. Spread some apricot (or some other) jam over the frangipane. Decorate the tart with berries and fruits of your choice. I used blackberries, raspberries, kiwi and plums. Before serving, you could brush the fruits with some apricot jam. Alternatively, prepare a gelatine mixture, as per instructions, and spoon it over the fruits to preserve them. Keep this tart in the fridge. Good luck!

My entry to CEDD 6, hosted by Suma and Raven.
ABC Series: DESSERTS hosted by Ramya of Ramya's Recipe