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What is an apricot tart?
Fruit and jam tarts – called “crostata” in Italian – are a staple of Italian culinary traditions. They have been around since the mid-15th century, and still today, they are popular all-over the country. Apricot tart is most often made with home made apricot jam, but here I want to show you how to make a version with fresh apricots. This version is more similar to a french tart than to an Italian crostata, but the idea is the same: a pastry base filled with plenty of fruit, and some sugar.You can expect a fruit tart that is really juicy, moist, soft, crisp on the edges, sweet and slightly sour (thanks to the acidity of the apricots). And the underlying almond flavour goes perfectly with the apricots.
Ingredients and substitutions
For the pie crust
Flour: you can use all-purpose flour or wholewheat flour. You can also use a gluten-free flour mix to make this apricot tart.Water: plain cold tap water. Oil: I like to use refined sunflower oil. You can replace it with any other vegetable oil that doesn’t have a strong flavour.Sugar: white or brown sugar work well.Baking powder: I add this to make the crust crumbly and lighter. It’s an important ingredient.
For the frangipane
Almonds: you can use almonds with skin or without skin. I like to use roasted almonds. If you almonds are not roasted, then you can bake them in the oven for 8 minutes at 180C or 360F to roast them.Sugar: I use white sugar, but any will work.Almond milk: almond milk adds even more almond flavour to the frangipane, so I strongly recommend it. You can replace it with any other milk.Vegan butter: you can replace it with margarine.
For the topping
Apricots: fresh ripe apricots are best. If your apricots are not very ripe, then add more sugar on top before baking the tart.Sugar: depending on your taste, you can add more or less sugar on top of the apricots before baking the tart. Since apricots can be sour, especially if they are not very ripe, I recommend adding some sugar on top, but again, that’s up to your taste.
Equipment
Rolling pin to roll the pie crustPie dish 11 inch, 27 – 28 cm. If you want to take the tart out of the pie dish, then it’s best to use one with a removable base.
How to make apricot tart
Start this recipe by preparing your pie dish, oil the bottom and the side, then dust it with flour. I do this to prevent the pie crust from sticking to the dish. Then, in a bowl, add sugar, oil and water. Stir with a spatula for a minute, till some of the sugar has melted in the liquid. Now add flour and baking powder, all at once. I sift them in so that the baking powder gets more evenly distributed, but you could also mix them first in a separate bowl, before adding them to the liquids.Mix with a spatula for a few seconds till the flour absorbs al the liquids. Then transfer the dough on a worktop and knead for just about a short minute, bringing all the pieces together into a dough ball. TIP: do not over-knead at this stage. Over-kneading will make your crust tough and less crunchy. Dust your worktop with flour, then with a rolling pin, flatten the dough till it’s large enough to cover your pie dish.To make things easier, you can roll the dough on a piece of parchment paper, then you can transfer it from the paper to the pie dish. Adjust the dough into the pie dish to make it fit well, then trim excess dough, and make many wholes on the base of the pie with a fork. Put tray in the refrigerator while you prep the frangipane.
For frangipane
In a blender, add almonds, sugar, almond milk, vegan butter, and blend till you reach an almond paste consistency. It should take a couple of minutes. Note that you can use either peeled almonds, or almonds with the skin on. You can also choose roasted almonds or raw almonds. I prefer roasted almonds.
Build the apricot tart
Preheat the oven to 180C (360F). Then, with the back of a spoon, spread the frangipane into the pie crust, on the bottom and sides. Now add the apricots on top of the frangipane. There are many ways to put the apricots. I like to split them in half, remove the stone, and simply push them into the frangipane. You can put them facing up, facing down, or some facing up and some facing down. Just make sure to squeeze them close to each other, slightly overlapping, as they shrink a bit while cooking. Sprinkle some sugar on top of the apricots and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, depending on the oven. You can add as much or as little sugar as you like. Keep in mind that apricots are quite sour without sugar, so I recommend adding some. I usually add 4 tablespoons. Take out of the oven, let cool down for 30 minutes, then take out of the pie dish and sprinkle with some powder sugar if you like. Enjoy as is, or with a scoop of plant-based vanilla ice cream.
Tips
Kneading: when making pie crust it is best to knead as little as possible. Kneading develops the gluten network in the flour, which in turn makes the pie crust tough and rubbery. So, knead little, just the time to bring the ingredients together into a ball.Apricots: apricots can be sour, so it is best if you use ripe apricots for this tart. Alternatively, if your apricots are very sour, add more sugar on top of them, before you bake the tart.Ice cream: add a scoop of plant-based vanilla ice cream on top of this tart to have an even more delicious treat.
Frequently asked questions
Storage
Store this apricot tart with frangipane on your kitchen counter, covered, for up to 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You can eat this tart at room temperature, cold, or even warmed up for a few seconds in the oven or microwave. I recommend re-heating the tart if you are planning to eat it with ice cream. I do not recommend freezing the tart.
Variations
Apricot tart without frangipane: if you don’t like almonds, or if you want to make a lighter tart, then you can remove the frangipane. Just dust the pie crust with some flour before adding the apricots, the flour will help absorb the juice from the apricots. With nuts on top: to add some crunch to this apricot tart, you can add some shaved almonds or some crushed pistachios on top, after the tart is cooked. If you liked this vegan apricot tart, you might also like:
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