Intense Apricot Tart a la Marketman

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Mopping up ingredients in the kitchen yielded another semi-invented pastry. With the other half of the frozen puff pastry (the other half was used for an apple dessert), I made this apricot dessert. The inspiration was finding three forms of apricots in the larder… First, a can of apricots in sugar syrup. Next some semi-dried (still moist) but intensely flavored apricots. And finally, a jar of opened apricot preserves from La Maison du Chocolat. I was hoping that throwing them all together would result in a multi-layered and intense apricot experience.

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To make, thaw the frozen puff pastry. First drain, then slice the canned apricots, add some chopped semi-dried (should work with dried as well) apricots and several tablespoons of apricot jam and heat this up until the jam melts and it is all nicely blended. Place the puff pastry on a silpat mat laid on a pan, add the filling to the center of the pastry and pull the edges up and over the filling. Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Prick with a toothpick so that the steam can escape.

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Bake in a 400F oven for 15-20 minutes until a nice golden color. Serve a few minutes after taking it out of the oven. Despite a very thin layer of apricot filling in each slice, this was INTENSE. Almost too intense, frankly. If I were to do this over, I would have added some sliced almonds or other nuts into the filling, and I wouldn’t have sealed the filling in with the dough. Instead, I would have left part of the top open, as with the previous apple version. At any rate, with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream it was still very good, just intense, that’s all. Hmmm, all the puff pastry is gone now…

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14 Responses

  1. As usual your apricot tart looks and sounds delicious. That’s a nice combination of apricot I would guess they came from Paris, America and Australia. Sounds like the United Nation Assembly Meeting sitting in one puff pastry baking right in the oven set in the Philippines. Next time you make this one I suggest only a suggestion, use Marcona almond from Spain or American almond for your almond paste/cream made out of ground almond, butter and eggyolks. Then we can another flag in your almond tart Spain!

  2. MC, the marcona almonds are delicious! They top a brioche at the Payard Patisserie in New York that also has orange rind…one of my favorites!

  3. A timely post. I also have a couple of puff pastry in the freezer and my family is getting tired of it with peaches… Will hunt some of those apricots on the next trip to the grocery….

  4. The tart is gorgeous!
    Interestingly, the new “Poll” seems to be politically incorrect. We shouldn’t cook over a wood or charcoal fire. It’s bad for the environment!
    We need to leave a nice,clean world for our grandchildren and for me, that includes my newest Apo, Lee!

  5. Silly Lolo,

    I am by no means an environmental expert, but here is an interesting paragraph from this website after googling “wood vs. gas pollution,” and I quote:

    “In fact burning wood is no bad thing: the efficient use of wood fuel is much more eco-friendly than more efficient and convenient fuels like kerosene and natural gas (LPG). LPG emits 15 times more CO2 (carbon dioxide) per kg than wood, and kerosene nearly 10 times as much. CO2 is the main source of global warming.”

    And considering that most folks who do cook with wood or charcoal in the Philippines may not be lucky enough to have their own vehicles, nor take excessive trips in one, not to mention airconditioning, etc., I think their per capita output of pollutants/consumption of fossil fuels may be FAR LESS than the average dweller in a first world economy… I do agree, it makes for a hazy countryside, which we do indeed have. And I won’t go to the whole plastic bag garbage disaster all over the third world at this point… :)

  6. mmmm. . . the tart makes my mouth water. . . plus whipped cream to match it. . . perfect!

  7. Marketman, The cracquelin at Payard no longer uses Marcona almonds, instead they have substituted CA almonds which are like stones atop the brioche. Broke a tooth on the first one I tried last month, Payard saved a penny and I was out $1800. at the dentist. I’m thinking of sueing Payard in small claims court after a complaint merely was shrugged off by the manager. Marcona have a higher fat content and are more tender, CA almonds are better used ground or chopped finely.

  8. MM:
    Interesting paragraph indeed! Even more interesting was the rest of the website. I got engrossed on how much people are working on wood stove design and how simple and efficient these stoves are getting to be.
    Still, I cannot help but “feel” the pollution I produce every time I fire up the ol’ wood burning fireplace.
    The Environmental Protection Agency here in the U.S. often calls for a “Clear Air Day” when people are asked not to drive their cars (busses are free on those days) or fire up their fireplaces. They even ask not to run your lawnmowers! My oh my, what’s a Silly Lolo to do?
    Anyhow, thanks for turning my head a bit as the view is indeed interesting and not as dark and hazy as I thought…altho’ not blazing bright.

  9. I was so inspired by this post that I made an apricot tart this morning, using just the jam and chopped dried apricots for the filling. Unbelievably simple, and it was a hit! Thanks MM!

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