Blueberry Almond Breakfast Tart Food

BLUEBERRY & ALMOND TART

Steps:

• Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Beat together the butter and sugar until it is light and fluffy, about 1 min. Stir in the almonds, egg and almond extract.
• Stir in half the blueberries and spoon into the pastry case. Smooth the top using the back of a metal spoon, then scatter over the remaining blueberries, pressing them in lightly. Bake for 45-50 mins until the pastry is crisp and golden, and the filling is golden and feels firm to the touch.
• Cool the tart for 10 mins in the tin, then lift onto a serving plate. Dust with a little icing sugar and serve warm or at room temperature.

BLUEBERRY ALMOND BREAKFAST TART

Steps:

• For the berry filling: Add the sugar, pinch of salt and 2 (1/4-pints) blueberries to a saucepan. Zest the lemon over the top, then juice about 1 tablespoon and add to the berries. Give it a stir. Put on the stove about medium heat and cook until the berries release their juices and looks like jelly or jam.
• While that's happening, whisk your egg yolks and cornstarch together in small bowl. Stir into the berries and boil until nice and thick. Set aside.
• For the crust: Put your flour into a food processor, add the 1/2 cup almonds, the sugar, a pinch of salt and pulse until it's a fine meal. Add the egg yolk and cold butter (Cold butter makes the crust nice and flaky.) Add the extract and process the mixture until it turns into a little ball of dough.
• Press the dough nice and evenly into a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Freeze 1 hour or so to firm it up. Freezing will also help make a nice crispy tart after baking.
• Put a piece of parchment on the dough and fill it with dried beans. Bake for 12 minutes or so. This is called blind baking, which keeps the crust nice and flat and leaves plenty of room for the filling.
• Remove the beans and parchment and cook the crust until it's nice and golden brown, another 16 minutes. Let cool.
• Heat the black currant jelly and 1 tablespoon water in a saucepan to melt it.
• Pour the blueberry filling in the tart and spread out to the edges. Mound the remaining fresh blueberries over top. Brush the top with the jelly glaze. Take the remaining toasted almonds and sprinkle them around the edges. Place in the fridge to firm up.
• Remove the tart bottom, slice and serve.

BLUEBERRY ALMOND TART WITH FRANGIPANE

Steps:

• Frangipane:.
• in a medium saucepan, bring the milk and vanilla to a boil. Set aside.
• In another saucepan, combine the flour, sugar, and beaten egg yolks.
• Gradually add the hot milk till combined.
• Cook slowly over low heat, stirring constantly, till cream thickens.
• (at this point, I put it through a strainer to get rid of any cooked-egg lumps).
• Pour the cream into a bowl and stir in the crushed macaroons. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
• Crust:.
• Preheat oven to 350. Using a mixer, cream together the butter and sugar; add the egg yolks, almond extract and lemon zest. Beat till smooth.
• Add the flour and baking powder and mix well.
• Using a 9 or 10 inch tart or springform pan with removable bottome, press 2/3 of the dough in the bottom of the pan with your fingers and work the dough up the rim about 1/2 inch. Set the remaining dough aside (refrigerating is a good idea - it may help rolling out later).
• Filling:.
• in a medium bowl, mix together the sugar, flour and cornstarch. Stir in the blueberries, sprinkle with lemon (and cinnamon if desired)and toss to coat blueberries evenly.
• Assembly:.
• spread an even layer of the frangipane in the bottom of the crust, using just enough to cover.
• Pour in the blueberry mixture and dot the top with 2 T of butter.
• On a floured surface, roll out the remaining dough to 1/16 inch thick (I found this dough quite moist and fragile, so sprinkle with flour).
• Cut strips of dough 1/2 inch wide and arrange them diagonally, 1/2 inch apart, to form a lattice top. Trim away overhanging dough.
• Bake for 40 minutes or till lightly browned.
• Dust with powdered sugar and serve warm.

BREAKFAST TARTS

Steps:

• For the tart crust: Mix the flour, sugar, cardamom and salt in a food processor. Add the butter and shortening, and pulse until the mixture looks like coarse meal. Drizzle in the ice water and vanilla, and pulse until the dough comes together. Turn the dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap and form into a ball. Wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
• For the blueberry compote: While the dough is resting, place the blueberries, sugar and lemon juice in a pot and bring to a boil. Boil for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the cornstarch and water, stirring to combine. Return to the heat and simmer until the compote reaches a thick, jam-like consistency, about 8 minutes.
• To assemble: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Roll out the dough to about 1/8-inch thick on a floured work surface and then cut into 4-by-3-inch rectangles using a pastry press or knife. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Place a heaping teaspoon of blueberry compote in the center of half of the rectangles and brush the edges with beaten egg. Top with the remaining rectangles and seal using a fork or dough crimper.
• Bake the tarts for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and brush the tops with milk. Return to the oven for another 10 minutes, until golden brown.

RASPBERRY AND BLUEBERRY ALMOND TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Cut a 3/4-inch wide strip off each side of the pastry and reserve. Roll out the pastry sheet on a lightly floured work surface to a 10-inch square and transfer to a sheet pan or cookie sheet. Brush the edges of the square with the egg. Working with 1 strip at a time, stand the strips along the edges of the pastry square and crimp where they meet. You want to create a shallow box, where the pastry square is the base and the 4 strips are the walls. Overlap the strips at the corners, stretching them, if necessary, to complete the walls of the box. Brush the border with the egg. Pierce the center of the pastry all over with fork. Bake until the pastry is golden brown, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a rack and cool completely.
• Using an electric mixer, beat the cream to soft peaks. With the mixer still running, gradually add the sugar and continue to beat to stiff peaks. Add the liqueur and beat until just well blended; be careful not to overmix or the whipped cream will turn into a buttery consistency and start to separate. Using a large spatula, fold in the nuts. Spoon the cream mixture into the prepared pastry crust. Arrange the berries over the cream. Sift the cocoa powder over and serve.
• Note: You can use any fruit that's in season (orange segments, berries, plums, bananas, grapes). Blueberries make a good substitute for the raspberries, and sliced peaches or nectarines are delicious as well.