“I’m not a vegetarian! I’m a dessertarian!”
― Bill Watterson, Something Under the Bed is Drooling: A Calvin and Hobbes Collection

I thought it would be nice to share one of my recent bakes, using seasonal fruits. I used nectarines and raspberries – an amazing combo. I used locally grown from the Niagara fruit belt. Nectarines and raspberries, when baked, get sweeter and pair absolutely perfectly with almonds. You can serve this tart warm or at room temperature, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream.

Sweet shortcrust pastry:

90g unsalted butter softened
65g sugar
3 egg yorks
200g all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting

Frangipane filling:

115g unsalted butter, at room temperature
100g sugar
130g ground almonds
30g all-purpose flour
2 large eggs, at room temperature
3-4 ripe nectarines
100g fresh raspberries
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
3 tbsp apricot jam

Whipped cream, to serve (optional)

Method:

Preheat the oven to 400F.

To make the sweet shortcrust pastry, cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl until well combined, then beat in the egg yolks, one at a time until fully incorporated into the mixture.

Mix in the flour until the mixture comes together as a ball of dough. Wrap the dough in cling film and chill for 10-15 minutes.

Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured work surface and use it to line a 9-10 inch loose-bottomed fluted pan. Line the pastry case with baking parchment and fill with ceramic baking beans (alternatively use uncooked rice or lentils).

Bake blind for 15 minutes, then remove the parchment and baking beans and return the pastry to the oven for an extra eight minutes, or until the pastry looks dry and faintly coloured. Set aside to cool.

Reduce the oven temperature to 375F.

To make the frangipane mixture, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, stopping the mixer and scraping down the sides of the bowl after adding each. Stir the ground almonds and flour. Mix to thoroughly combine. Stir in the vanilla and almond extract.

Spread the frangipane mixture over the cooled pastry shell, using a pallet knife to smooth the filling.

Halve the nectarines and slice them into wedges, about 1 inch thick. Sit the nectarines on the filling in concentric circles and gently press them down, and press the raspberries into the frangipane, in between the nectarine slices.

Bake the tart for 30-40 minutes, or until the tart is golden brown across the top. Let cool, then brush lightly with apricot jam, if desired. If it’s not liquid enough to brush on, warm the jam gently in a small saucepan. This adds both shine and serves as a protective coating to prevent the fruit from drying out.

Serve with whipped cream (optional).

This recipe can serve 8 people.

Note: The recipes on this site are my original creations or have been adapted from existing recipes with the original sources attributed. All recipes on this site have been tested at least once in my kitchen. Any and all errors are entirely mine.

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