Best Festive Apricot 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.

WARM APRICOT TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Roll the dough into a 12-inch diameter circle that is about 1/4-inch thick. Transfer the dough to a 10-inch tart pan by rolling the dough around the rolling pin. Line the tart pan with the dough. Dock the dough and set aside.
• Make the almond cream. Spread a layer of almond cream inside the tart. Pit and quarter the fresh apricots. Arrange them on top of the almond cream by standing them on end. Sprinkle slivered almonds on top of the tart and bake for about 40 minutes. Dust with confectioners' sugar.
• Place the almond flour, cake flour and cold butter in the mixing bowl and mix until combined. Add the salt and powdered sugar. Mix until combined. Add the egg and mix until combined. Shape into a disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for about 1 hour to chill dough.
• Roll the dough to the desired size on a lightly floured work surface.
• Baking instructions vary and will be specified in any recipe using this dough. The dough will keep, well wrapped in plastic wrap in the refrigerator for 1 week or in the freezer for 1 month. Thaw the dough in the refrigerator until ready to use. If you want to store the dough already rolled into a tart pan, wrap it in plastic wrap.
• It is possible to buy almond flour (use 1 cup if you do) but it just as easy to make your own. Place the slivered almonds (no skin preferred) and granulated sugar into the food processor. Pulse until the almonds and sugar reach the consistency of flour. It is best to pulse because the heat of the blade will cause the release of the oil from the almonds.
• Mix in the flour. Mix in the butter. Add the egg and mix until the mixture becomes light and creamy. Do not overmix or the gluten in the flour will overdevelop and the almond cream will lose its delicate texture when baked.

ROASTED APRICOT TART

Steps:

• For the tart crust, roll the dough to a rough 12-inch disk and transfer it to the cookie sheet. Pierce the dough all over with a fork and place a plate or pattern on to and cut it to a perfect 11-inch circle. Butter the bottom of one of the cake pans and center it on the disk of dough. Chill one hour.
• While the dough is chilling, cook the apricots. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and set a rack in the middle level. Thickly butter the other pan and sprinkle it with the brown sugar. Arrange the apricot halves, skin side down in the pan, alternating a dried apricot with every two fresh apricot halves. Sprinkle with the remaining butter and then the lemon juice. Bake the apricots about 40 minutes, until they are well cooked through. Cool on a rack.
• To bake the tart crust, lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees and place the cookie sheet and dough, still covered by the cake pan into the oven. Bake for 15 minutes, then remove the cake pan. Continue baking about 15 to 20 minutes more, until deep golden and crisp, piercing the dough with a fork if it bubbles up. Cool the crust in the pan on a rack.
• To assemble the tart, reheat the apricots for a few seconds over low heat to make sure they are not stuck to the pan. Invert the tart crust to a cardboard and slide the crust over the top of the pan the apricots are in. Cover the crust with the cardboard or a platter and invert the apricots onto the crust. Remove the pan and rearrange the apricots if necessary. Serve tepid with some whipped cream.