How many of you watch Bake Off? I am currently following the Italian edition, the last episode will go live next Friday. I am fascinated by all the challenges, quite often realising that there are a few (or many) preparations I know little of.
An example is frangipane. I heard it in recipes, but I have never made it. Initially, I thought it was a sort of marzipan, but it took me little research to understand I was wrong! 🙂 Frangipane is a sweet, almond-based cream that works well as filling in cakes and tarts. So why not try it in a tart?
Instead of making the usual shortcrust pastry, I prepared a nutty flavoured one, combining plain flour with hazelnut flour (if you do not find hazelnut flour, you can buy plain peeled hazelnuts and grind them in a food processor).
With this recipe, I explain how you can prepare a plain frangipane cream. However, I’d definitely recommend adding some fruits on top of the tart, e.g. apricots, plums, cherries or raspberries, which will help to degrease the nutty and buttery taste of the tart. Just place them on top of your tart (sliced if using apricots/plums) and bake all together following the recipe below.
Nutty Frangipane Tart
Ingredients
Shortcrust Pastry
Frangipane
To Garnish
Instructions
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Place the cold diced butter, sugar, orange zest, and salt in a large bowl. Mix using an electric whisk with the dough hooks. Add the egg and continue to mix until well combined. Then add the flours and mix until you get a smooth dough (you should get a compact ball of dough).
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Transfer your dough onto a wooden working board and knead it with your hands for a few seconds to obtain a compact dough (do not add additional flour and do not knead the dough longer than that). The dough will remain slightly sticky, but this is fine.
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Place the dough between two baking sheets and roll it until you obtain a 3mm think dough sheet. Transfer the dough onto your tart tin (no need to grease it) and press it well against the tart tin. Remove any excess dough. Pierce the bottom of your tart case with a fork and place it in the freezer for 15 min.
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Preheat oven at 180C (170C fan) and prepare the frangipane.
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Add the soften butter and sugar into a large bowl and whisk with an electric whisk. Add the eggs, one by one, until you obtain a smooth batter. Add the aroma and the plain flour and whisk well. Finally, add the almond flour and mix using a spatula.
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Remove the tart case from the freezer. Add the frangipane mix and spread evenly. Garnish with almond flakes.
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Place in preheated oven. Bake for 40-45 minutes.
