Peach frangipane tart with puff pastry

A puff pastry makes this delicious peach tart a breeze.

This lovely, rustic tart pairs the juicy sweetness of fresh peaches with the rich, nuttiness of frangipane – all of it nestled in a flaky, buttery crust. Using puff pastry in place of a traditional tart crust makes it significantly simpler and quicker to make. Puff pastry for the win!

I was inspired by the beautiful peach frangipane tart that won first prize at this Wednesday's peach pie contest at the Woodstock Farm Festival. Thanks for the idea, Dolores!

We received a big box of sweet, juicy, golden orbs in the mail on Thursday, courtesy of the Washington State Stone Fruit Growers Association's Canbassador program. They're mighty tasty. Technically, I'm supposed to make jam or chutney or some such with them but that doesn't mean I can't use some of them for other things.

Frangipane is a creamy, almond-flavored paste made by mixing ground almonds with butter, sugar and egg plus a little bit of amaretto and a pinch of salt. In other words, heaven.

While you're pre-baking the puff pastry shell, you mix up the frangipane. The puff pastry will balloon up when you bake it, so after you take it out, you give it a bit of a beat down to flatten it out but leave the edges alone so they stay puffed up to help contain everything as it bakes. Then spread the frangipane over the flattened part.

Brush a mixture of peach preserves thinned with amaretto liqueur over the frangipane, then top with sliced, fresh peaches and give it all a sprinkle of sugar and some sliced almonds (though I didn't have any sliced almonds.)

Then you bake it until the peaches are golden and the frangipane has puffed up in all the nooks and crannies and gotten a little browned and bubbly. Let it cool down enough to avoid burning your tongue, then eat it!

Please note: I made my tart rectangular rather than circular because it's much, much easier and also because there is no wasted pastry.

Peach Frangipane Tart With Puff Pastry
Makes one, large tart

1 lb. puff pastry
4 just-ripe peaches
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup cane sugar, plus 1 tsp extra for sprinkling
2/3 cup ground almonds
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
2 eggs
Zest of 1 organic lemon
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 cup peach or apricot jam
2 tablespoons amaretto liqueur
1/4 cup flaked almonds (optional)
All-purpose flour, for dusting

1. Preheat the oven to 385 degrees F. Place a Silpat or other baking sheet in a large baking tray or line it with parchment paper. If your puff pastry is not already in sheet form, you'll need to roll it out on a floured surface to 1/8-inch thickness and then transfer it to the baking sheet. I just unfolded the puff pastry right on the Silpat in my baking sheet and patted it gently into the right shape. Once it's all flat and perfect, use a sharp knife to score a line about 1 inch in from the edge all the way around.

2. Bake the puff pastry in the oven for 12-15 mins until lightly puffed and golden. Remove from the oven and gently push the center down with the back of a large spoon so that you have a flat base with a raised border.

3. Meanwhile, halve and stone the peaches, then slice them thinly and let them drain. In a bowl, beat together the butter, sugar, salt, ground almonds, eggs, lemon zest, almond extract and 1 tablespoon Amaretto, if using. Spread the frangipane evenly over the pastry, leaving the border free. 

4. Combine the peach or apricot jam and the remaining tablespoon Amaretto in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring to melt the jam. Boil until slightly thickened, about 30 seconds. Brush the mixture over tart filling and top with the peach slices, neatly overlapping them in circles. Sprinkle over the remaining sugar and the optional flaked almonds.

4. Bake for 30 mins, then turn the oven down to 350 degrees F., cover the tart lightly with foil and cook for another 30-40 minutes. The frangipane should puff up between the peaches and be golden brown. Remove and cool on a wire rack, then slice and serve. Leftovers will keep for 1 day.

Related post on The Garden of Eating: Peach Cobbler With Biscuit Topping