Gooseberry Frangipani Tartlets
When we were children my grandma used to make gooseberry pie and I hated it because the gooseberries were too sour. I’ve never quite got to grips with them becauseI don’t like adding a lot of sugar to fruit recipes, but this year I’ve grown some lovely sweet purple ones which are perfect for this Good Food recipe I found online yesterday. All the sugar is in the pastry and the frangipani and the raw fruit is just popped in between making a lovely tart jammy layer in the middle of all the sweet crispy deliciousness.
Ingredients:
Pastry:
1 large egg, separated
225g unsalted butter, slightly softened
50g golden caster sugar
350g plain flour
Filling:
50g unsalted butter, softened
50g golden caster sugar
1 large egg
1tsp almond extract
50g ground almonds
1tbsp plain flour
300g gooseberries
Method:
Pastry:
Place the egg yolk, butter, sugar and 1/2 tsp salt in a processor and mix until soft and creamy. Add the flour and bring together until only slightly mixed then tip onto a work surface and bring together by hand. Do not knead or overwork the dough. Wrap in cling film and chill for 20 mins.
Filling:
Beat the sugar, butter, egg and almond extract until creamy, then add the almonds and flour and fold together until well combined.
Prepare a flat baking sheet by lining with parchment and preheat the oven to 180C
Roll the chilled pastry on a lightly floured surface and cut out 8 x 9cm circles. Be firm but gentle with the pastry, it will be quite soft and may crack- don’t worry too much, this adds to the rustic appearance and won’t affect the finished tartlets. Place the discs on the prepared tray. Put a dessertspoon of the frangipani filling on each disc, then top with a handful of gooseberries, pushing them gently into the frangipani to hold them in place.
Cut out 8 slightly bigger pastry circles. Lightly whisk the remaining egg white and brush the edge of each tart then place a lid over the gooseberry filling and press the edges gently together. Brush the remaining egg white over the top of each pie then sprinkle with a little caster sugar.
Bake in the middle of the oven for 30 minutes until golden and crisp.
Serve warm with a good vanilla ice cream or some pouring cream.
Oh I love gooseberries! These sound amazing!