You could accuse me of making too many desserts of late, but then would you really want to? Especially when I come to you today bearing this beautiful vegan Apricot Frangipane Tart.
This tart disappeared within hours in my home, and that's only because I put away half of it so it would not be scarfed down in a single sitting. And it's easy to see why, when that tart shell is so crispy and flaky, when that almond filling is so creamy and tasty, and when those perfect, sunny apricots on top scream, "eat me!"
You can make a frangipane tart with so many different fruits, so if you don't have apricots, or don't want to use them, use cherries or berries or peaches. Apples work too.
There are three elements in this tart: the flaky pastry, the filling, and the fruit you choose to make it with.
The pastry is a basic shortcrust pastry with flour, cornstarch, water, sugar, vegan butter and salt and is easy as pie to make. Make sure, as you always would when making a pastry crust, that your ingredients like water and butter are ice cold. In summer things heat up fast even at room temperature so work as fast as you can. It's not going to be a total disaster if your butter melts a bit, but try and not let it melt too much.
The filling just comes together in a food processor, so it's super easy to make. Throw in the almond flour, sugar and a few other ingredients and you are set.
Make sure the fruit you use is ripe so it'll add sweetness, although the apricots I used were ripe but slightly tart and they tasted quite wonderful as well, especially contrasted with the sweet almond.
All purpose flour
Cornstarch
Sugar
Vegan butter
Almond flour
Almond extract
Apricots (or another fruit, ripe)
Vegan Tarte Tatin
Vegan Cranberry Custard Tart
Vegan French Apple Tart
Vegan Peach Berry Pie
Vegan Strawberry Pie
Vegan Rhubarb Pie
Vegan Apricot Frangipane Tart
Vegan Apricot Frangipane Tart
Equipment
- 10-inch tart shell, with a removable bottom if possible.
- Large bowl
- Food processor (optional)
Ingredients
- 6 ripe apricots (halved and pitted. Can use another fruits like cherries, berries, apples or peaches)
- ¼ cup sliced, blanched almonds (for scattering on top, optional)
For the vegan pastry crust:
- 1.25 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- ¼ tsp salt
- 6 tbsp vegan butter (cut into ½-inch cubes)
- ¼ cup sugar
- Ice cold water as needed
For the filling:
- 1.25 cups almond flour (superfine)
- 3 tbsp all purpose flour
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ cup applesauce
- 1 tsp almond extract
Instructions
Make the pastry crust:
- Whisk the flour, cornstarch, salt and sugar in a bowl. Cut in the butter using a fork or a pastry cutter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- Slowly drizzle in the cold water, mixing with a fork, until the dough comes together. Try not to overmoisten.
- Place the dough in cling wrap, shaping into a disc as you wrap tightly. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 3 days.
Make the almond filling:
- Place all ingredients in the food processor or a bowl and mix until they come together. This will be a thick batter.
Assemble the tart:
- Roll out the pastry dough to make a disc that will fit into a 10-inch tart pan with a slight overhang. Fit the disc into the pan, making sure to press in the sides. Run a rolling pin over the top to remove any overhanging dough. Use the extra dough to fill in any gaps or cracks. Refrigerate for an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- Place the tart shell in the oven and bake 10-15 minutes or until lightly brown.
- Scrape the batter into the baked tart shell and smooth the top if needed.
- Place the fruit on top in a decorative pattern or scatter. Scatter on the sliced almonds if using. Bake 40 minutes or until brown spots appear on top and the filling appears set, particularly in the center.
- Cool the tart on a rack and remove the outer shell of the tart pan. Slice and serve.If you did not bake the tart in a pan with a removable bottom, just cool thoroughly on the rack and then slice.
Notes
- For a pretty presentation, make a glaze with 1 tbsp apricot jam and 1 tbsp amaretto and brush on.
- Or simply dust on some confectioners' sugar before serving.
I didn't have applesauce so I used plain unsweetened almond yogurt instead. I had some cherries and added them with the apricots for decoration. Made a glaze by simmering apricot jam with almond extract and maraschino cherry juice, and I brushed it on after cooking . The tart was a huge hit at a party full of non-vegans served with ice cream (coconut and non-vegan options) for a birthday. People were excited and asked lots of questions about it and kept talking about how good it was. I really liked this recipe and will absolutely make it again. Thank you!
So lovely to hear.!
This is such a great recipe! I love desserts like this, but am not big on the eggy-ness of many custards in the original versions. Yours is the perfect solution! I am excited to try it. What I have right, are pluots. They are plum-apricot hybrids, heavy on the plum side. Do you think they would work in here?
Pluots would work for sure.
Oh, can't wait to try this. Looks amazing!
Thank you so much Vaishali! I love plant-based food and I will definitely try this great Frangipane dessert!
That looks amazing! Thanks for the recipe.