Apricot Cream Pie With Almonds Recipes

APRICOT, ALMOND & CREAM CHEESE CROSTATA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Blend almond paste and 3T sugar in food processor until finely chopped.
• Add cream cheese, egg yolk, and vanilla.
• Blend until smooth.
• Unroll pie crust on heavy rimmed baking sheet.
• Spread filling over crust, leaving 1 1/2 inch plain border.
• Arrange apricot quarters, rounded side down, in a spoke pattern in 2 concentric circles atop filling.
• Fold dough border up over the edge of filling.
• Brush exposed apricots with warm jam.
• Sprinkle with remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar.
• Bake crostata until crust is golden brown and apricots are tender and slightly browned about 43 minutes.
• Sprinkle with crushed Amaretti cookies.
• Cool 30 minutes.
• Serve warm or at room temperature.

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.