Apricot Hazelnut Mince Pies Food

HAZELNUT CRUNCH MINCE PIES

Steps:

• Put the flour, half the hazelnuts, the icing sugar and butter in a food processor and blitz to a sandy texture. Add the egg yolk and 1-2 tbsp water, and blitz briefly until the dough clumps together. Tip out onto a work surface and knead the dough a little until smooth. Flatten to a puck shape, wrap in cling film, then chill for 30 mins.
• Mix the mincemeat, apple and orange zest in a bowl. Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Unwrap the pastry and roll out on a lightly floured surface to the thickness of a £1 coin. Stamp out 12 circles with a 10cm fluted biscuit cutter and use them to line a 12-hole muffin tin.
• Fill each pie with the mincemeat mixture. Scrunch up the pastry trimmings and re-roll to the same thickness as before. Stamp out 6 circles using an 8cm cutter, and 6 stars. Put the remaining hazelnuts in a dish and lightly whisk the egg white in another. Brush a little egg white around the inner rim of each pie, then brush one side of each pastry lid, and the stars. Press each lid into the hazelnuts, egg-side down, so they stick, then lightly press on top of the pies, nutty-side up. Repeat with the stars and place these on the remaining pies.
• Bake for 20 mins or until golden and crisp. Leave to cool in the tin for 5 mins, then scoop out and cool on a wire rack. Dust with icing sugar before serving. Will keep in a sealed container for 3 days.

HAZELNUT FRANGIPANE TART WITH APRICOTS

Steps:

• Press dough into bottom and up sides of a 9-inch round tart pan with removable bottom, about 1/4 inch thick. Patch, if necessary. Trim excess dough flush with rim. Refrigerate or freeze until firm, about 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Line shell with parchment, and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until edges are golden, about 20 minutes. Rotate shell, and remove parchment and weights. Bake until bottom is crisp and lightly golden, 10 to 15 minutes more. Let cool on a wire rack 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 325°F.
• Pulse 1/3 cup hazelnuts in a food processor until finely ground. Stir together ground hazelnuts, flour, and salt. With an electric mixer, beat butter and granulated sugar until pale and creamy, 3 to 5 minutes. Beat in egg. Add hazelnut mixture, and beat until just combined. Frangipane can be refrigerated in an airtight container up to 1 week.
• Spoon frangipane into tart shell, and smooth with an offset spatula. Let stand 10 minutes. Bake until set, about 15 minutes. If edges brown too quickly, cover with a foil ring (see page 324). Transfer to a wire rack and let cool.
• Peel apricots (see page 343); cut in half, and remove pits. Just before serving, beat cream with confectioners' sugar and vanilla until soft peaks form; whisk in crème fraîche. Spread over frangipane. Arrange 7 apricot halves, cut side down, around edge. Cut remaining apricot half into thirds and arrange in center.
• Heat jam in a saucepan over medium-low until loose. Stir in lemon juice, and let cool for 5 or 10 minutes. Strain through a sieve; discard solids. Brush strained jam over apricots, and spoon remaining glaze over cream. Sprinkle remaining 2 tablespoons hazelnuts around apricots. Serve immediately.

APRICOT & HAZELNUT STUFFING

Steps:

• Fry onions in the butter. Stir in nuts; fry until golden. Remove from the heat, add apricots, breadcrumbs, parsley and lemon zest. Mix in the egg and season. Use half to stuff the neck end of the turkey; shape the rest into balls.
• Put the balls in a buttered baking dish, then drizzle with oil. Bake for 30 mins until golden, or roast them around the turkey.

DUTCH APRICOT PIE

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine sugar and tapioca. Add apricots and lemon juice; toss to coat. Let stand for 15 minutes. Line a 9-in. pie plate with pastry. Trim pastry to 1/2 in. beyond edge of plate; flute edges. Pour filling into crust., In a small bowl, combine the flour, sugar and pecans. Stir in butter. Sprinkle over filling. , Bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cover edges with foil during the last 15 minutes to prevent overbrowning. Cool on a wire rack. Store in the refrigerator.

FRESH APRICOT PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°. In a large bowl, sprinkle apricots with lemon juice. Combine sugar, flour and nutmeg. Add to apricots, toss gently to coat., Line a 9-in. pie plate with bottom pastry; trim to 1 in. beyond edge of pie plate. Add filling. Roll out remaining pastry to make a lattice crust. Trim, seal and flute edges. Brush with milk and sprinkle with additional sugar. , Cover edges of pastry loosely with foil. Bake 45-55 minutes or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool on a wire rack.

APRICOT PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• Mix 2 1/2 cups of flour and the salt in a bowl; cut the shortening into the flour mixture with a pastry cutter until the mixture is crumbly. Using a fork, mix in water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough just holds together. Divide the dough in half and form each half into a ball. Working on a floured work surface, roll each ball out into a crust big enough for a 9-inch pie dish with an inch or so to spare. Carefully lift a crust, fold into quarters, position into pie dish, and unfold the crust. Set the other crust aside.
• Mix the sugar, 1/4 cup flour, and cinnamon together in a large bowl until thoroughly combined; stir in the lemon juice and apricots. Spoon the apricot filling over the pie crust in the dish, and top with the reserved crust. Crimp the edges of the crusts together with a fork, cut away the excess crust, and cut slits into the pie to allow steam to escape. Cover the edges of the pie crust with strips of aluminum foil to prevent burning.
• Bake on center rack of the preheated oven until the pie is browned and the filling is bubbling and thickened, 35 to 45 minutes. Remove to a rack to cool and sprinkle top with 1 teaspoon of sugar.

APRICOT AND HAZELNUT MINCE PIES [GLUTEN-FREE]

Steps:

• To make the pastry: put the flour and cinnamon into the bowl of a food processor.
• Add the butter and pulse until it looks like very fine breadcrumbs.
• Sprinkle in the sugar and 3 tbsp cold water, and pulse until the mixture starts to clump together, about 30 secs.
• Tip the mixture onto a board and gently squeeze the pastry until it comes together into a ball - add water if it feels dry.
• Wrap the pastry in cling film and chill for 30 minutes.
• Heat oven to 190C/fan 170C/gas 5 [For Americans, that's 375 F).
• Roll the pastry on a lightly floured surface to the thickness of £1 coin (3.15mm).
• Using a 7cm cutter, cut out 10-12 discs and use to line a 12-hole bun tin with them.
• Use a 6cm cutter for the lids, or use a 6cm star cutter to make star shapes.
• Chill both.
• Make the mincemeat: put all the ingredients into a food processor and pulse on and off until evenly chopped.
• Spoon 1-2 tsp into each tart, dampen the edge of the pastry bottom with water and sit a smaller pastry disc or star on top.
• Using scissors, snip a hole in the lid, if you've made round tops.
• Bake for 12-15 mins until golden brown.
• Lift onto a wire rack to cool and dredge with icing sugar.