Apricot Tart With Cornmeal Crust Food

APRICOT TART WITH CORNMEAL CRUST

Steps:

• For crust:
• Whisk flour, cornmeal and salt in small bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in large bowl to blend. Beat in egg yolks. Add dry ingredients and beat just until blended. Divide dough in half; flatten into disks. Wrap each dough disk in plastic and refrigerate 20 minutes. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated. Let dough soften slightly at room temperature before using.)
• Meanwhile, prepare apricot filling:
• Bring 5 cups water to simmer in heavy medium pot over medium heat. Add apricots and poach until tender, about 25 minutes. Drain well.
• Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly oil 9-inch-diameter tart pan with removable bottom. Unwrap 1 dough disk; press onto bottom and up sides of tart pan. Spread apricot preserves over bottom of crust. Place poached apricots over preserves, covering crust completely and overlapping slightly. Using pastry brush, brush beaten egg over edges of crust. Roll out second dough disk between 2 sheets of parchment paper to 12-inch round. Remove top piece of parchment; using 1-inch-diameter cookie cutter, cut hole in center of top crust. Turn crust over onto filling. Remove second piece of parchment paper. Press around crust edges to seal. Cut off excess dough to make top crust flush with tart pan sides. Brush crust with beaten egg and sprinkle with 3 tablespoons sugar.
• Bake tart until cornmeal crust is golden brown, about 45 minutes. Transfer apricot tart to rack. Cool 30 minutes. Remove tart from pan and cool completely. (Apricot tart can be prepared up to 1 day ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.) Serve tart with Apricot Sauce and whipped cream, if desired.

APRICOT CREAM TART

Steps:

• Make dough:
• Pulse almonds, flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor until almonds are very finely chopped. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal with some small (roughly pea-size) butter lumps. Add yolk and extracts and pulse just until mixture begins to clump.
• Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 4 portions. With heel of your hand, smear each portion once or twice with a forward motion to distribute fat. Gather dough together into a ball with scraper and transfer to tart pan. Pat dough with floured fingers into tart pan in an even 1/4-inch-thick layer, including side (side should be flush with top of rim). Chill until firm, about 30 minutes.
• Make filling while dough chills:
• Toss apricots with Amaretto and 1/4 cup sugar, then let macerate until juicy, at least 1 hour.
• Whisk together preserves, whole egg, yolk, cream, almond extract, a pinch of salt, and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in another bowl until combined. Chill, covered, until ready to use.
• Bake tart shell:
• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375°F.
• Line tart shell with foil and fill with pie weights. Bake until side is set and edge is pale golden, 18 to 20 minutes. Carefully remove foil and weights and bake shell until bottom is pale golden, 5 to 7 minutes more. Cool completely in pan on a rack, about 15 minutes.
• Fill and bake tart:
• Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.
• Lift apricots from liquid with a slotted spoon and arrange, skin sides down, in tart shell. Whisk remaining apricot liquid into egg mixture, then pour over apricots(fruit will poke through filling). Cover edge of tart shell with a pie shield or foil and bake tart until filling is set and slightly puffed, 45 to 50 minutes. Cool tart completely in pan on rack.

RUSTIC CHERRY-APRICOT TART

Steps:

• Crust:Pulse flour, cornmeal, granulated sugar, and salt in a food processor until combined. Add butter; pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Drizzle in 6 tablespoons ice water evenly. Pulse until dough holds together when pressed between 2 fingers (it should not be wet or sticky). If too dry, add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time; continue pulsing. Shape into a disk; wrap in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour; or freeze up to 3 months.
• Filling:In a large bowl, combine apricots, cherries, granulated sugar, cornstarch, and salt. On a lightly floured piece of parchment, roll out dough to a 15-inch circle. Transfer to a 10-inch pie dish; pour filling into crust. Fold edges of crust over filling, overlapping as necessary. Brush edges of dough with egg wash and sprinkle with sanding sugar. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees, with racks in middle and bottom. Place a foil-lined baking sheet on bottom rack. Bake on middle rack until pastry is golden and juices are bubbling in center, about 1 hour, 15 minutes. (If crust is browning too quickly, tent with foil.) Transfer to a wire rack; let cool at least 2 hours before serving. Pie can be stored at room temperature up to 1 day.

DIABETIC FRIENDLY COUNTRY APRICOT TART

Steps:

• Grease and lightly flour a large baking sheet; set aside.
• For the cornmeal crust, in a medium bowl stir together 3/4 cup flour, cornmeal, 2 tablespoons Splenda, baking powder, and salt.
• Cut in butter or margarine until the size of small peas.
• Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of cold fat-free milk over mixture; gently toss with a fork.
• Add 3 to 4 tablespoons more fat-free milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough is moistened (dough will be crumbly).
• Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead 7 to 8 times or just until dough clings together and form into a ball. On the baking sheet, flatten dough.
• Roll into a 12-inch circle and set aside.
• For Filling:.
• In a bowl stir together 1/3 cup Splenda, the 3 tablespoons flour, and the nutmeg or cinnamon. Stir in the apricots or peaches and lemon juice.
• Mound the filling in center of crust, leaving a 2-inch border.
• Fold border up over filling.
• Brush top and sides of crust with the 2 teaspoons milk.
• Bake in a 350 F degree oven about 40 minutes or until crust is golden and filling is bubbly.
• To prevent overbrowning, cover the edge of the crust with foil the last 10 to 15 minutes of baking if needed.
• Cool tart for 30 minutes on the baking sheet on a wire rack.