Apricot Almond Cream Cheese Crostata Food

APRICOT, ALMOND & CREAM CHEESE CROSTATA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Blend almond paste and 3T sugar in food processor until finely chopped.
• Add cream cheese, egg yolk, and vanilla.
• Blend until smooth.
• Unroll pie crust on heavy rimmed baking sheet.
• Spread filling over crust, leaving 1 1/2 inch plain border.
• Arrange apricot quarters, rounded side down, in a spoke pattern in 2 concentric circles atop filling.
• Fold dough border up over the edge of filling.
• Brush exposed apricots with warm jam.
• Sprinkle with remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar.
• Bake crostata until crust is golden brown and apricots are tender and slightly browned about 43 minutes.
• Sprinkle with crushed Amaretti cookies.
• Cool 30 minutes.
• Serve warm or at room temperature.

APRICOT CROSTATA

Steps:

• Beat together butter and sugar with an electric mixer at medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in egg and vanilla. Reduce speed to low and mix in flour, salt, and lemon zest until mixture just forms a dough.
• Shape dough into 2 balls, 1 slightly larger than the other. Flatten each ball into a 5-inch disk, then wrap each in wax paper and chill 30 minutes.
• Stir together preserves, lemon juice, and extract in a small bowl.
• Roll out thicker piece of dough (keep remaining piece chilled) between 2 sheets of wax paper into an 11-inch round. Remove top sheet of paper and invert dough into a 9- by 1-inch fluted round tart pan with a removable bottom. Peel off paper and fit dough into pan, trimming side to 1/4 inch below top of rim. Chill shell.
• Roll out remaining dough in same manner and remove top sheet of paper, then cut dough into 10 (1-inch-wide) strips. Slide strips on wax paper onto a baking sheet and chill until firm, about 10 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Spread apricot filling in tart shell and arrange 5 strips across filling (about 1 inch apart), trimming excess dough at ends of strips. Arrange remaining 5 strips on top (about 1 inch apart) to form a lattice (do not weave), trimming ends. Press ends onto edge of tart shell and bake crostata in middle of oven until golden, 40 to 50 minutes. Cool completely in pan on a rack.