Not Healthy: Plum and Almond Tart Recipe

Tarts are fun English desserts on the healthier side of desserts with a focus on sweet fruit flavors rather than heavy cream or loads of sugar. Make no mistake, this dessert is sweet but it is nicely balanced by the fruit acidity and uses far less sugar than most other baked treats. You can serve a tart with ice cream or creme fraiche but it's perfectly good on its own and you can save some calories that way. Plum and almond is a solid flavor combination for English desserts and this recipe presents the sweet stonefruit and almond flavors in multiple ways to create a complex dessert out of a simple process.

This recipe calls for halving the plums so you get big pockets of plum full of delicious juice but you can also cut the plum into slices and spread them out for a more even plum distribution.

Plum and Almond Tart Recipe

Details:

Serves: 6-8
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes

Equipment:

• Oven
• Kitchen utensils
• Measuring cups and spoons
• Rolling pin
• Mixing bowls
• Large baking sheet
• Foil

Ingredients:

• 1 packet pre-made puff pastry 
• Icing sugar (can use regular sugar)
• 9 oz marzipan
• 1 1/2 lb large ripe plums, halved and stoned
• 2 tbsp brandy
• 1/2 tsp almond essence
• 1 oz brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 oz butter, cut into small pieces
• Cooking spray

Directions:

1. Halve the plums.
2. Preheat the oven to 375F.
3. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray.
4. Roll out the puff pastry into a large rectangle. Prick the puff pastry all over with a fork. Using a sharp knife, score a line one inch from the border on all sides. Do not cut all the way through the pastry, just score about halfway through. This will help create a border for the tart. Transfer pastry to baking sheet.
5. Dust the work surface with a light dusting of icing sugar. Roll out the marzipan into a thin sheet and lay it on the pastry. The layer should be thin enough that it covers all or almost all of the pastry inside the scored border. 
6. Cover the marzipan with the plums, cut side down.
7. Mix the brandy and almond essence in a bowl. Drizzle this mixture over the plums. 
8. Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon in a bowl and sprinkle over the plums.
9. Cut the butter into small pieces and place on top of plums. 
10. Bake for 40 minutes. Check approximately 25 minutes into bake. If the border is getting too brown, place strips of foil on the border for the remainder of the time in the oven.
11. Serve warm.