Warm Apple Almond Pastry Recipes

APPLE ALMOND GALETTE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425° F. Line a rimmed jelly roll pan with foil. You want a pan with rimmed edges, should your pastry leak at all. Trust me on this one!
• For the apple filling: Combine the apple slices, sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, flour, almond extract, lemon juice, and salt in a large bowl. Toss well to coat apples.
• For the pastry & almond layer: In a mixing bowl or in the bowl of a food processor, mix just 2 cups of the flour with the salt and sugar. NOTE: This recipe makes enough dough (dough only, not apple filling!) for 2 galettes. I either make 2 galettes right away or wrap one half of the dough well in plastic wrap and then place in a baggie to go in the fridge or freezer for a future day of fresh galette baking.
• Add cold butter chunks and cut into the flour mixture using a rigid pastry cutter or by pulsing the food processor. Once the mixture looks like large crumbs clinging together in clumps, add the remaining 1/2 cup of flour. Mix lightly or pulse the food processor a few times to combine. Do not over mix. The flour should coat the clumps.
• Sprinkle the ice water over the dough. With your hands or a wooden spoon, mix until the dough holds together. Divide dough in half and form into two discs.
• Using two 12'' square pieces of parchment paper, place a disc of dough between them. Start rolling the dough from the center of the disc outward, turning the dough and parchment as necessary. Continue rolling from center to outer edge until you have a circle shape that is 12'' in diameter.
• Now lift dough and parchment, still intact, and place on your foil lined pan. Peel off the top piece of parchment, leaving the circle of dough on top of the remaining piece of parchment.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll the marzipan to a 9'' circle. Place the marzipan on top of the pie dough.
• Spoon prepared apple filling over the marzipan, leaving a 2'' apple-free border around the entire circle of dough. Dot the apple mixture with the 2 tablespoons of butter.
• Gently fold the 2'' dough border up and over the apple mixture, pressing gently to seal. Your aim is for a rustic look, with nothing perfectly even. The dough border will only partially cover the apple mixture, leaving exposed apples in the center. If you have any trouble lifting the dough border from the parchment paper, simply slide a thin spatula dipped in flour between the dough and parchment to loosen.
• Beat the egg with 1 tablespoon of water and brush some of the mixture on the dough for a beautiful golden baked pastry. Sprinkle dough with the cinnamon sugar mixture, to your liking. Then sprinkle on course sugar for more texture and a bit more sweetness (optional). Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the crust is beautifully browned and the apples are bubbling a bit. Transfer galette from oven to a cooling rack.
• For the almond toffee glaze: After removing galette from the oven, place sugar in a small heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook until the sugar dissolves, stirring as needed to dissolve the sugar evenly. This should take about 4 minutes or so. Cook for 1 minute, or until the sugar is golden in color. Remove from heat and carefully stir in almond extract. Then quickly drizzle mixture over the baked galette, as the drizzle hardens rather quickly.
• Once glaze hardens, slice galette into individual pieces and serve. This is best eaten on the day it's baked, while still warm, or at room temperature.

WARM APPLE-ALMOND PASTRY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Thaw pastry sheets at room temperature about 1 hour before using it, or microwave it at 20% power for 3-4 mintues, thawed but still cold for easier handling.
• Grate 3/4 cup of the almonds.
• Make the almond mixture by combing, in a bowl, the grated almonds, sugar, flour, whole egg and the 1 egg yolk, and almond extract. Mix well and set aside.
• Prepare the apples by cutting them in half lengthwise, and removing the stems, and seeds, then slice the apple halves crosswise, to 1/4" thick. Set aside.
• Unfold one pastry sheet onto a baking pan large enough to accomodate the rolled out pastry, (a pizza pan might be best,) spreading out to 10 1/2" square.
• Spreak the almond mixture evenly over the pasty to within 1" of the edge.
• Arrange apple slices, creating them into an overlapping pattern, over the filling.
• Cut remaining pasty sheet into 9 - 1" strips.
• Moisten outer edges of spread dough with water. Arrange five strips diagonally over apples, twisting the strips, then press edges into moisted dough to seal.
• Trim excess.
• Arrange the fmaining dough strips around the edge of pasty, to creat a nice even border.
• Bake for 30 - 35 minutes, pastry should be golden brown. Cool for 10 minutes.
• Spread the warmed jam over the pastry. Brown the remaining almonds in microwave, by cooking them on high for 5 - 7 minutes. Stirr every 30 seconds. Chop the almonds.
• Sprinkle the almonds over the pastry. Then sprinkle with powdered sugar, if you want to. Cut it into squares, then top with ice cream and/or whipped topping. Serve it warm.

SUPER APPLE AND ALMOND TART FROM BRENDAN LYNCH

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Mix flour, salt, and caster sugar together in a medium-sized bowl.
• Rub butter into flour to resemble fine breadcrumbs.
• Add egg and just enough milk to form soft/firm dough.
• Knead for a minute, shape into ball and put on plate and cover with Clingfilm and let rest for 20 minutes in fridge.
• Grease a 9-inch fluted or un-fluted tart tin.
• Roll out pastry to 1/4-inch thickness.
• Transfer to tin and press the pastry into sides with a small ball of dough. Leave about a 1 inch overhang of pastry and cut the rest away with a scissors.
• Line pastry with non-stick parchment paper so that it projects beyond the pastry. Fill to near top with rice or beans ensuring that the sides are supported by the dry material. Let stand for 20 minutes in fridge. This recovery period will reduce pastry shrinkage during baking.
• Preheat oven to 355F or 180 C for 15 minutes. Have an egg white that is lightly beaten ready to seal pastry before second bake.
• Transfer to preheated oven and bake for 12 minutes.
• Remove from oven and using the parchment to help you, lift the dry contents away from the pastry shell. Prick the base all over with a fork to reduce puffing up. Brush the pastry shell with the egg white.
• Return to oven and bake for 8 to 10 minutes. You are partially baking the shell which will complete its baking with the almond cream and apples.
• Remove from oven and let cool on rack.
• Peel and quarter the apples and remove core with seeds. Slice the quarters thinly.
• Put the butter and sugar in a bowl, and using a hand-held whisk or a food processor, combine until the mixture is smooth, light and satiny.
• Add the ground almonds and continue to process until well blended.
• Add the flour and cornflour, whisk again, and then add the egg. Whisk for about 15 seconds more, or until the almond cream is homogeneous.
• Add the rum or vanilla and whisk just to blend.
• Spread mixture over pastry case base and smooth with a small spatula. Or use French custard - crème pâtissière .
• Starting with the outside circle, place overlapping slices of apple all the way round the shell covering the almond cream beneath.
• Do the same with the second inner circle.
• The final inner circle can be completed in this way. Or alternatively, stand each apple slice at a 35 degree angle to form a 'flower-type' pattern in the middle.
• Sprinkle the slices with 85 grams caster sugar.
• Bake in preheated as before for 20 to 25 minutes till apples are soft.
• Make the apricot glaze by gently heating the apricot preserve and water until dissolved.
• Then push through sieve to remove fruit pieces.
• Remove from oven and brush apples slices with the warm glaze.
• Allow to cool and set.

APPLE & ALMOND CRUMBLE PIE

Steps:

• First, make the crumble. Tip the flour, ground almonds, sugar and a pinch of salt into a bowl, then rub in the butter with your fingers until the mix resembles breadcrumbs. Stir in the flaked almonds and chill until needed. Can be prepared up to two days ahead and chilled.
• Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 with a baking tray inside. Peel, core quarter and slice the apples, then tip into a bowl with the sugar, mixed spice and flour. Toss well and set aside. Roll the pastry out on a lightly floured surface until it's large enough to line a 20-22cm pie dish. Line the dish with the pastry, then trim and crimp the edge. Alternatively, re-roll the pastry trimmings into an 80cm-long strip, then cut into three thin, long strips, and arrange into a 1cm-wide plait. Arrange the plait around the edge of the dish, and brush with some beaten egg.
• Spoon the apples into the base, then scatter over the crumble. Bake on the hot tray for 35-40 mins until the topping is toasted and the pastry is deep golden. Leave to stand for 10 mins, then serve warm with cream, custard or ice cream.

ALMOND PASTRY PUFFS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine 1 cup flour and salt; cut in 1/2 cup butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add 2 tablespoons cold water; stir with a fork until blended. Shape dough into a ball; divide in half. Place dough 3 in. apart on an ungreased baking sheet; pat each into a 12x3-in. rectangle., In a large saucepan, bring remaining butter and water to a boil. Remove from the heat; stir in extract and remaining flour until a smooth ball forms. Remove from the heat; let stand for 5 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Continue beating until mixture is smooth and shiny. , Spread over rectangles. Bake at 400° until topping is lightly browned, 18-20 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan to wire racks., For frosting, in a small bowl, combine the confectioners' sugar, butter, water and extract; beat until smooth. Spread over pastries; sprinkle with almonds.