Apple Hazelnut Frangipane Tart (vegan)
This vegan apple hazelnut frangipane tart is a lovely bake for Autumn. Consisting of a crisp shortcrust pastry case filled with hazelnut and almond frangipane and apples, it would be a brilliant dish for a dinner party, or it is equally good as a coffee morning treat!
Servings 10 people
Equipment
- 25 cm/10 in round loose bottomed tart tin
- baking beans
Ingredients
Pastry:
- 200 g (1 + ⅔ cup) plain (all-purpose) flour
- 50 g (½ cup) ground almonds (almond flour)
- 30 g (⅓ cup) icing (powdered) sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 130 g (½ cup + 1 Tablespoon) vegan block butter cold and diced
- 1 Tablespoon cold vodka (or water)
Frangipane:
- 125 g (scant cup) roasted skinned hazelnuts
- 75 g (10 Tablespoons) plain (all-purpose) flour
- 75 g (¾ cup) ground almonds (almond flour)
- 40 g (⅓ cup) cornflour (cornstarch)
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 120 g ( ½ cup + 1 ½ Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar
- 120 g (½ cup) vegan block butter melted
- 150 g (½ cup + 2 Tablespoons) hazelnut milk (or another non-dairy milk)
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
To Assemble:
- 4 small apples (Granny Smith/Pink Lady/Braeburn/Jazz are all good options)
- handful roughly chopped hazelnuts
- appox 175 g (½ cup) jam (apple/blackberry/blackcurrant eg.) optional
Instructions
- To make the pastry, mix the flour, ground almonds, icing sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add the cold butter and rub it in using your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs and no lumps of butter remain.200 g (1 + ⅔ cup) plain (all-purpose) flour, 50 g (½ cup) ground almonds (almond flour), 30 g (⅓ cup) icing (powdered) sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt, 130 g (½ cup + 1 Tablespoon) vegan block butter
- Add the cold vodka (if using) and mix to combine. Gradually add enough cold water to bring the pastry together into a ball (about 1-2 Tablespoons). Shape the pastry into a disc, wrap and refrigerate for about an hour until firm enough to roll out.1 Tablespoon cold vodka (or water)
- Roll the pastry out on a lightly floured surface into a circle big enough to line a 25 cm/10 in round loose bottomed tart tin. Press the pastry right into the corners then roll over the top of the tin with a rolling pin to trim off the excess.
- Prick the base of the pastry shell all over with a fork then place it in the freezer for 20 minutes until solid. Meanwhile preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/350°F/gas mark 4.
- Line the pastry case with baking parchment, pressing it right into the corners, then fill with baking beans or dried rice, making sure that the sides are propped up.
- Bake for 15 minutes then remove the tin foil and baking beans and return the tart shell to the oven for a further 5-10 minutes until very pale golden and dry to the touch. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
- To make the frangipane, place the hazelnuts in a blender or food processor and pulse until they are fairly finely chopped. Add 2 Tablespoons of the flour and continue to pulse until they are finely ground. Stir as needed so that they blend evenly. Be very careful not to blend them for too long otherwise they will start to release their oils and turn into hazelnut butter, stop as soon as they are mostly finely ground, a few larger bits of rubble is ok.125 g (scant cup) roasted skinned hazelnuts, 75 g (10 Tablespoons) plain (all-purpose) flour
- Tip the hazelnut mixture into a bowl, add the rest of the flour, the cornflour, ground almonds, baking powder, sugar, melted butter, hazelnut milk and vanilla and almond extracts and whisk until smooth.75 g (¾ cup) ground almonds (almond flour), 40 g (⅓ cup) cornflour (cornstarch), 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder, 120 g ( ½ cup + 1 ½ Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar, 120 g (½ cup) vegan block butter, 150 g (½ cup + 2 Tablespoons) hazelnut milk (or another non-dairy milk), ½ teaspoon almond extract, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Core the apples. Cut two of them into halves, and the other two into quarters. Thinly slice each of these sections, but keep the slices together.4 small apples (Granny Smith/Pink Lady/Braeburn/Jazz are all good options)
- If you are using jam, spread a thin layer over the base of the pastry case.appox 175 g (½ cup) jam (apple/blackberry/blackcurrant eg.)
- Pour the frangipane into the pastry case. Arrange the apple slices on top, pushing them into the frangipane slightly. Scatter over a handful of chopped hazelnuts.handful roughly chopped hazelnuts
- Bake for about 50 minutes until the frangipane is set. A skewer inserted into the centre should come out with a few moist crumbs but no wet batter. You may need to loosely cover the tart with tin foil towards the end of baking if the top starts to colour too much
- Leave it to cool in the tin for 20 minutes then carefully turn it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- See post above for tips, details, storage instructions and step-by-step photos.
- All of my recipes are developed using grams, and as with all of my baking recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scale rather than the cup coversions. Cups are a wildly inaccurate measuring system and you will get far better, more consistent results using a scale, not to mention that it is also easier and less messy than cups!
- If you prefer, you can arrange the apple slices on top of the tart in a circular fan shape rather than keeping them together.
- If you are roasting and skinning your own hazelnuts, make sure that they are completely cold before blending them.