plum and almond tart

method

This is a great filling for a tart. It gives you a lovely frangipane mixture, with the delicate taste of almonds and the lovely texture of baked plums.

Make the pastry, then line an 11-inch loose-bottomed tart pan with it and bake it blind.

In a food processor, blitz the whole almonds to a fine powder and put into a bowl. Then blitz the butter and sugar until light and creamy. Add this to the almonds with the lightly beaten eggs and fold in until completely mixed and nice and smooth. Stir in the pistachio nuts, then place in the fridge to firm up slightly. Once the mixture has chilled, pour it into your tart shell about three-quarters full. You don’t want to overfill it, otherwise it will spill over the edge when you add the plums.

Toss the plums in the vanilla sugar, let them sit for 10 minutes, then push them into the tart mixture. Bake the tart on a pan at 350°F for about 1 hour, or until the almond mix has become firm and golden on the outside but is still soft in the middle. Rotate it once during baking for evenbrowning.Allow tocool for about 1/2 hour and serve with ice cream or crème fraîche.

serves: 8

ingredients

• 12oz blanched whole almonds
• 11/4 cupsunsaltedbutter
• 2 cups sugar
• 3 whole free-range eggs
• 1 handful whole pistachio nuts, shelled
• 1 basic pastry recipe
• 6—7 plums, halved and pitted 3 tablespoons vanilla sugar