Rustic Apricot Tart
After dinner with my parents we had planned to serve ice wine, so I needed something savoury or tart. I thought apricot would do nicely since they are in season and inexpensive. This recipe is adapted from the Joy of Baking.
Start by making a short crust pastry, which was so easy to make, I would use it again for other recipes. You will need the following ingredients:
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 Tbs white sugar
- ½ cup unsalted butter, chilled, and cut into 1″ pieces
- ¼ cup ice/cold water
In a food processor, add the flour, salt, and sugar and process until combined. Add the butter and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal (about 15 seconds). Pour 1/8 cup (30 ml) water in a slow, steady stream through the top until the pastry just holds together and looks like pastry. Only add the remaining water if necessary. Do not process more than about 30 seconds. Turn the pastry out onto your work surface, gather it into a ball, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for about one hour to chill.
Once the pastry has chilled, remove from refrigerator and place on a lightly floured surface. Roll the pastry into a 13″ square, rolling from the center of the pastry outwards to get uniform thickness. Transfer the pastry to a parchment paper lined baking sheet and store in the refrigerator until needed.
For the filling, slice the apricots along their seam and twist to expose the pit. Slice each half into 2-3 segments. Arrange them in a spiral or concentric circles in the centre of the crust, then fold up the sides, ensuring there are no gaps. Sprinkle with sugar to taste (I only used about 1 Tbs) and bake at 400F for about 35 -45 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown. I used my pizza stone. Let cool and garnish with chopped pistachios or almonds.
I served it warm with frozen vanilla yogurt with tea in my new Derby cups.
