Apricot Frangipane Tart Recipe

In a world where strawberries and peaches seem to dominate the summer fruit sphere, it's always nice to change things up and give other produce time to shine. Enter apricots, which are pretty similar to other stone fruits like peaches, but they tend to have a nice tart flavor instead of purely a sweet one. Because of the tart flavor they bring to the table, apricots shine in sweet desserts, as they do in this apricot frangipane tart brought to us by recipe developer Jessica Morone. 

Just once glance at this beautiful tart and you'll most definitely want to serve it at your next gathering. "This is a great dessert for any summer party," Morone describes. "It's so pretty and everyone will be impressed." Between the sweet, buttery crust, the almond frangipane filling, the fresh apricots, and the final glaze of apricot jam, this dessert is elegant without being stuffy and just casual enough to enjoy at an outdoor summer barbecue. 

For the from-scratch crust, you'll need butter, powdered sugar, an egg, vanilla extract, and all-purpose flour. Next up is the frangipane, and for that, you'll need more butter, vanilla extract, all-purpose flour, and eggs, along with granulated sugar, almond flour, and lemon zest. "Adding lemon zest to the frangipane gives it a brighter and richer flavor that also pairs well with the apricots," Morone explains. Speaking of apricots, you'll need some fresh ones, along with apricot jam and a bit of water for the final glaze. And, for an additional final touch, have some sliced almonds on hand to sprinkle on top of the finished product.

If you don't have access to fresh apricots or want to make this recipe when they aren't seasonally available, Morone says that you can rehydrate dried ones. To do so, place dried apricots in a bowl, add boiling water and cover the bowl, allowing the apricots to soak for 10 minutes. Then you can drain the water and use the rehydrated apricots as you would fresh ones.

Kick things off by making the buttery tart crust. Add the powdered sugar and 10 tablespoons of softened butter to a large bowl, then use a hand mixer to cream the ingredients together until fluffy, which should take 3 to 4 minutes. Next, add an egg and ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract and mix. Finally, you're going to gradually add in the 2 cups of all-purpose flour. As you're adding the flour, keep the mixer's speed on low and stop mixing right when everything is fully combined. Once all of the flour is incorporated, you should have a cohesive dough on your hands. Use your hands to form the dough into a ball, wrap it up in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. 

As you're making the crust, you may notice that there's quite a bit of sugar and butter that goes into the mix, but it all helps give it an irresistible flavor. "I love the crust on this tart, it's like a delicious, buttery sugar cookie," Morone says. " I would probably eat it all on its own."

After your dough has chilled in the fridge, pull it out and place it on a clean, lightly-floured surface. Roll the dough out to be about ¼-inch thick and a little bit bigger than your tart pan. Transfer the rolled-out crust to the pan and press it in, making sure to tuck it into all of the pan's crevices. Cut away excess dough around the edge then transfer the whole thing back to the fridge to chill for 30 minutes. To save a little time, you could also chill it in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Whatever chilling method you choose, go ahead and get your oven preheating to 350 F. Once the crust has chilled, transfer it right into the preheated oven to bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until it feels dry. "You want the tart crust to be golden and dry to the touch, you don't want to underbake it or your will end up with a raw-tasting shell," Morone warns. On the other hand, be sure not to overbake. "If you bake it too much it could start burning when you put it back in the oven when it's fully assembled," she explains. 

Grab a large bowl and add the granulated sugar and the remaining 8 tablespoons of butter. Beat with a hand mixer until creamy then add in ⅓ of the almond flour and one egg, incorporating these ingredients on low speed. Alternate adding the remaining almond flour and eggs, still on low speed, until everything is evenly combined.

Next, add in the remaining 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour, the lemon zest, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Mix these ingredients in until just combined, then transfer the frangipane to the par-baked tart shell. Spread the filling out evenly across the surface then layer the sliced apricots on top. Finally, sprinkle the sliced almonds on top.

Transfer the tart pan to a baking sheet then pop it into the oven and bake for 45 to 55 minutes. "You want to make sure the frangipane gets puffy and golden before taking it out of the oven," Morone advises.

Once baked, remove the tart from the oven and mix together the apricot jam and water. Brush the jam mixture all over the top of the tart for an added fruity, sweet touch.

With that final glaze of apricot jam on top of the tart, go ahead and slice into it and serve. While Morone notes that you could simply enjoy a slice with a sprinkle of powdered sugar, she says "You could also pair it with ice cream or whipped cream." Ideal for summer evenings but tasty all year round, this apricot frangipane tart will become your fruity dessert go-to when strawberries just aren't cutting it anymore.