Daring Bakers: Apricot Frangipane Pie

Rachael from pizzarossa was our lovely June 2013 Daring Bakers' host and she had us whipping up delicious pies in our kitchens! Cream pies, fruit pies, chocolate pies, even crack pies! I was thrilled at the challenge because I've been fixated on baking pies and tarts for quite some time now and this challenge was yet another excuse to try something new. So, before I continue with the post, I have to say a big "thank you" to Rachael. 

Now Rachel gave us four different pies to choose from for the challenge - the infamous Crack Pie made famous by David Chang in his Momofuku Milk Bar; A Chocolate and Caramel Tart, a Crostata de Marmellata (an Italian-styled fruit tart) and a traditional double-crusted Apple Pie. 

I chose to make one of the four - the Crack Pie - and then make a fruit pie  of my own, an Apricot Frangipane Pie (see pic above!). 

First, I tried my hand at the Crack Pie. It was impossible not to try it, having heard and read so much about this utterly decadent (it's a whole lot of butter combined with a whole lot of sugar)  which I am told is being  sold at US$45 a pie or something to that effect. I was also encouraged, having tasted a replica of it made by my colleague and fellow Daring Baker Jane of The Wayward Oven.

Doesn't my Crack Pie look awesome in this photo?

Well, that's because it hadn't been cut yet at the time. Once I cut into it, I discovered to my horror that my filling hadn't set and was still gooey (this despite me extending the baking time substantially). Thick, rich butterscotch-y filling just oozed as I sliced and though it was delicious (and calorie laden, for sure), I was devastated. 

Let me show you a photo of the goooey mess. Be warned, it's not a pretty sight. 

Told ya! Not sure what went wrong. I will probably attempt to make it again once I am done grieving. Yes, I am a little dramatic over failed baking projects. Sigh.

I decided to shift my attention on my Apricot Pie which I was sure wouldn't not yield such a catastrophic result. It's a frangipane fruit pie, after all. 

I chose Apricots by chance. I was planning on making a mixed berry pie but on my grocery run last weekend I saw a carton of Apricots on sale and I grabbed two immediately. I tried them as soon as I got home and was pleased to find how soft and sweet they were. Score!

After eating a couple of them, I put the apricots to good use in the Apricot Frangipane Pie ... errr, even though it kinda looks like a tart. The apricots and the almonds in the frangipane went amazingly well. 

Frangipane is an almond pastry cream used in cakes, pies, pastries and tarts. It's made by simply creaming  butter and sugar together and then adding in almost paste (or ground almonds), eggs and a little flour. It acts as a custard would in holding the fruit pie/tart together. 

This will be my new go-to pie (whenever I see affordable apricots at the grocers, that is - imported fruit such as Apricots, Raspberries, Blueberries etc cost an arm and a leg here in Malaysia). 

  

Apricot Frangipane Pie

For the Crust

150g all purpose flour

25g icing sugar

90g butter, cold and cubed

3-4 tbsp cold milk

For the Filling

600g fresh apricots, pitted and halved

60g brown sugar

70g ground almond  

50g butter, room temp

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp plain flour

For the pastry, combine flour and icing sugar. Add the cold butter and rub the cubes  into the flour with your fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the ice cold milk in, gradually, until a soft dough forms.

Wrap in cling film and chill for at least 30mins.

For the filling, beat the butter, ground almonds and sugar until smooth. Add the egg and extract and beat till all ingredients are incorporated well. Stir in the flour.

Once the dough has chilled, roll the dough and fit it inside the pie dish. Puncture holes at the base of the pastry with a fork and blind bake for 10-13 mins or until the pastry starts to brown and the base is no longer soft.

Using a spatula, fill the half-baked case with the frangipane cream. Arrange the apricots on the cream.

Bake for about 20-30 mins or till cream sets and the pastry is cooked.

Almond Oat Cookies

  

Things have been a little out of whack lately. Well, not lately exactly. Let me rephrase that: things have been a little out of whack for the past eight months or so and it's all because of my husband. Well, ok, that's not really true. It's all because of my husband's work schedule — he works nights and I work in the day. He works Sundays through to Thursdays and is off on Fridays and Saturdays. I work Mondays through to Fridays and have the weekends off. This kinda makes eating together an impossibility on most days. It kinda makes cooking meals a huge pain as well. And grocery shopping. The only day we have off together — Saturday — we spend catching up or catching a movie. 

The result is a pantry filled with instant noodles, muesli bars and cereal: easy-fix meals for the man to eat when he wakes up at noon or to snack on when he comes back in the early hours of the morning. I used to have a hot meal waiting for him for supper but, well, I've been remiss of late and haven't had the time or energy to be quite the doting wife. Yeah, I know I could cook ahead and freeze meals but I've been too busy and he finds operating the oven too much work anyway. So, to the dude who invented instant noodles,  big thank you!

This weekend I decided to make a huge batch of Almond Oat Cookies for him to eat for breakfast, tea or whenever. 

Biscuits for breakfast? Am I kidding you?

These babies are nutritious. No, really. They're like cereal, actually. Sure, there's a fair amount of sugar in them but there's sugar in them muesli bars too, right? Plus, they are packed with oats and almonds ... now that can't be all bad, right?

More importantly, they're lovely to have with a cup of coffee or tea or a glass of milk. They're nice and chewy with a little crunch, thanks to the almond bits.

And, most importantly, they're real quick to whip up and they fill you up real fast — three cookies at a go is all I can manage. This is good news because three dozen cookies will go a long way ... at least till next weekend. I hope. 

And if not? Well, there are still about a half-dozen packets of instant noodles!

Almond Oat Cookies

1/2 cup all purpose flour, sifted
1/2 cups sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup shaved/sliced blanched almonds
2 tbsp cream
2 tbsp golden syrup (or honey/light corn syrup)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup melted butter

Preheat the oven to 190C.

Whisk the butter, corn syrup, cream and vanilla till well incorporated.

Mix the dry ingredients together: the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, oats and almonds.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir till it becomes a soft dough.

Drop teaspoonfuls of the batter on a lined baking sheet, about 1 inch apart. Flatten the mounds gently with the back of a spoon.

Bake for 8-10 mins. Let them cool slightly before transferring them to a rack to cool completely.

Store in an airtight container.