Apricot Cream Tart Recipes

HOMEMADE APRICOT TARTS

Steps:

• Add chopped dried apricots and enough water to come 1 inch above apricots in a saucepan. Simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until thickened.
• Stir in sugar, butter, nutmeg (optional), cinnamon and orange juice. Cook a bit longer, until texture is like jam.
• Stir, cool and store in refrigerator in an airtight container until ready to use.
• Add cream cheese and butter to the bowl of a stand mixer.
• Using the beater blade, combine ingredients on medium-high speed until well blended. Add vanilla, if using, and mix until incorporated. Turn mixer off, add flour and mix on low speed just until combined and a ball of dough forms. The dough should be thick.
• Form into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least one hour, or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Form dough into walnut size balls and place into a mini muffin or tart pan. Using a tart tamper dusted with flour, press down on each ball to form the tart shape.
• Fill each tart with a rounded teaspoon of filling (homemade or store-bought apricot jam). Bake for 10 minutes or until very lightly golden. Remove pan from oven and cool completely on wire racks.
• When completely cooled sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired. Store in an airtight container or freeze in freezer containers until ready to serve. Allow tarts to come to room temperature before serving for best texture.

APRICOT CREAM TART

Steps:

• Make dough:
• Pulse almonds, flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor until almonds are very finely chopped. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal with some small (roughly pea-size) butter lumps. Add yolk and extracts and pulse just until mixture begins to clump.
• Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 4 portions. With heel of your hand, smear each portion once or twice with a forward motion to distribute fat. Gather dough together into a ball with scraper and transfer to tart pan. Pat dough with floured fingers into tart pan in an even 1/4-inch-thick layer, including side (side should be flush with top of rim). Chill until firm, about 30 minutes.
• Make filling while dough chills:
• Toss apricots with Amaretto and 1/4 cup sugar, then let macerate until juicy, at least 1 hour.
• Whisk together preserves, whole egg, yolk, cream, almond extract, a pinch of salt, and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in another bowl until combined. Chill, covered, until ready to use.
• Bake tart shell:
• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375°F.
• Line tart shell with foil and fill with pie weights. Bake until side is set and edge is pale golden, 18 to 20 minutes. Carefully remove foil and weights and bake shell until bottom is pale golden, 5 to 7 minutes more. Cool completely in pan on a rack, about 15 minutes.
• Fill and bake tart:
• Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.
• Lift apricots from liquid with a slotted spoon and arrange, skin sides down, in tart shell. Whisk remaining apricot liquid into egg mixture, then pour over apricots(fruit will poke through filling). Cover edge of tart shell with a pie shield or foil and bake tart until filling is set and slightly puffed, 45 to 50 minutes. Cool tart completely in pan on rack.

CHERRY-APRICOT CREAM CHEESE TART

Steps:

• Make crust:
• Blend flour, sugar and salt in processor. Add butter and process, using on/off turns, until mixture resembles very coarse meal. Add yolk and process until moist clumps form. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic; chill 1 hour. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Keep chilled. Let soften slightly at room temperature before rolling out.)
• Make filling:
• Beat cream cheese and orange peel in medium bowl to blend. Whisk sugar, yolks, cornstarch and flour in small bowl until smooth. Bring milk to simmer in saucepan. Gradually whisk hot milk into yolk mixture; return to same pan. Whisk over low heat until custard thickens and boils. Cool custard 15 minutes. Beat barely warm custard into cream cheese mixture. Press plastic wrap directly onto surface of filling; chill until cold, at least 3 hours and up to 1 day.
• Roll out dough on lightly floured surface to 12-inch round. Transfer to 9-inch-diameter tart pan with removable bottom. Press dough gently into place; trim excess dough. Freeze 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 400°F. Line crust with foil; fill with dried beans or pie weights. Bake crust 10 minutes. Remove foil and beans. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F. Bake crust until golden, piercing with fork if bottom bubbles, about 5 minutes. Cool crust in pan on rack.
• Spread cream cheese filling over crust. Arrange cherries, cut side down, in 2 concentric circles around edge of tart. Arrange apricots in middle of tart, overlapping slightly. Place any remaining cherries in center. Stir preserves in saucepan over low heat until beginning to melt. Strain into small bowl. Brush enough preserves over fruit to glaze. Serve immediately or chill up to 6 hours.

VERLET'S APRICOT TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
• Butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch (23cm) fluted tart pan with removable bottom. Set aside.
• Make the pastry:
• In a large bowl, combine the melted butter and the sugar, and using a wooden spoon, stir to blend. Add the remaining ingredients and stir to form a soft, cookie-like dough. Transfer the dough to the center of the buttered pan. Using the tips of your fingers, evenly press the pastry along the bottom and up the sides of the pan. The pastry will be quite thin.
• Place the pan in the center of the oven and bake unitl the dough is slightly puffy and set, 12 to 15 minutes. Sprinkle the ground almonds over the bottom of the crust. (This will prevent the crust from becoming soggy.)
• Meanwhile make the filling:
• In a medium-size bowl, combine the crème fraîche, egg, extracts and honey and whisk to blend. Whisk in the flour.
• Pour the filling evenly over the pastry. Starting just inside the edge of the pan, neatly overlap the halved apricots, cut side up, at an angle. Arrange in two or three concentric circles, working toward the center. Fill in the center with the remaining apricots.
• Place the tart pan on a baking sheet. Place the baking sheet in the center of the oven and bake until the filling is firm and the pastry is a deep golden brown, 55 to 60 minutes. The apricots will shrivel slightly. Remove from the oven and immediately sprinkle with confectioners' sugar. Place the tart on a rack to cool. Sprinkle again with confectioners' sugar just before serving.