Plum Delicious

styled by Kate Ashley
photography by Kelly Moore Clark

This plum frangipane tart combines a buttery crust, creamy almond frangipane, and fresh plum slices to create a beautifully seasonal and delicious dessert.

WHAT YOU NEED:
(Shortcrust dough)
1 cup plain flour
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 lemon, zest
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 large egg, beaten
1/8 cup water, ice cold
1 medium egg, egg wash
1 teaspoon milk, egg wash
(Frangipane filling)
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 lemon, zest
2 large eggs
1/2 cup almond meal
2/3 cup plain flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon salt
6-8 fresh plums
1 tablespoon honey
Fresh thyme leaves

HOW TO MAKE PASTRY:
Rub the butter into the flour. Sift the dry ingredients, flour, icing sugar and salt into a large bowl. Add the lemon zest and the cold, cubed butter into the flour and rub the butter and flour together between your fingers until it resembles a bread crumb consistency.

Add egg and water. Make a well in the centerof the flour and pour in your egg. Using a fork, mix the egg into the flour. Add 1 tablespoon ice-cold water and use your hands to bring the dough together.

Bring dough together and refrigerate. Tip the pastry onto a lightly floured work surface. Use floured hands to shape pastry into a ball taking care not to overwork the dough. Flatten slightly into a disc and wrap well in cling wrap. Place in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

Roll out dough. Remove the chilled pastry from the refrigerator and transfer it to a clean, lightly floured surface.  Allow pastry to sit for about 10 minutes. To roll out, lightly flour your countertop and rolling pin and using firm, even strokes. Roll the pastry out to the thickness of a coin.

Prepare dough in tart tin. Flour the base of a 9in deep fluted tart tin and gently lift the pastry and place into the prepared tin. Using a sharp knife, trim off the excess pastry from the tin. Refrigerate the prepared pastry shell for at least 1 hour

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Once the pastry is chilled, prick the pastry base all over with a fork and then line with greaseproof paper and fill with pie weights or rice (or both) all the way up the sides. Blind bake for 15 minutes, then remove the greaseproof paper and pie weights. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and milk to form your egg wash. Brush the base of the pastry with egg wash and return the pastry back to the oven and bake for a further 7-10 minutes or until the base is dry and a light golden color. Remove from the oven and leave the tart base to cool.

Make frangipane filling while the tart base is cooling. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, sugar and lemon zest together on medium speed for 5 minutes until pale.

Add wet then dry ingredients. Add the eggs one at a time, beating between each addition, scraping down the sides of the bowl every so often. 

Add the almond meal, flour, salt, vanilla and almond extract and mix until combined. Pour the frangipane filling into the tart shell and spread out evenly.

Slice plums and place on tart. Cut each of the plums in half and de-stone. With a sharp pairing knife, thinly slice the halves. Set to one side the two rounded ‘ends’ , you can eat these later.

Starting from the outside and working your way in, place your plum slices, next to one another, spiralling in on top of the filling. Place the tart back in the oven and bake for 45 minutes, until the filling has set and is golden brown.

Remove the tart from the oven and brush the plums with honey warmed in the microwave for a couple of seconds.  Sprinkle with thyme leaves.

Recipe from emmaduckworthbakes.com