Chez Panisse Almond Tart Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and position the rack to the center of the oven.
• Line the bottom of a 9-inch cake pan with a round of parchment paper, or butter the pan and dust it lightly with flour, tapping out any excess.
• With an electric mixer, beat together the sugar and almond paste until the paste is finely broken up (the sugar crystals helps break the paste into pieces-so don't add the butter yet!) 3.
• Now add the butter and beat for a few minutes until light and fluffy.
• In a separate bowl, or a measuring cup with a spout, stir together the eggs with a fork then dribble it into the batter as you beat.
• Add the vanilla.
• Mix together the flour, baking soda and salt with a whisk.
• Stir the dry ingredients into the batter until just incorporated.
• Transfer the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for about 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
• The baking time may take a but longer due to the variation in different brands of almond paste.
• Cool the cake on a rack before serving.
• This cake is extremely moist and will keep well for up to a week if well-wrapped.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 325 degrees. Butter and lightly flour a 9- or 10-inch springform pan.
• Place almond flour and confectioners' sugar in a food processor and pulse to combine. Add egg white, almond extract and 1/4 teaspoon salt, and process until it all forms a paste.
• Add granulated sugar to the food processor and pulse until everything is well combined and crumbly. Add butter and vanilla, and continue processing until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. With the machine running, add eggs one at a time, processing until smooth between eggs.
• Stop the machine, scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula, and add flour, baking powder and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Pulse a few times, until the dry ingredients are just integrated. (Be careful not to overprocess.)
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until the cake is golden on top and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 60 to 70 minutes for a 10-inch pan and 70 to 80 minutes for a 9-inch pan. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cake cool completely before unmolding and serving.
• Put the peach slices in a bowl and taste a slice. If they seem tart, sprinkle peaches with a little confectioners' sugar.
• Just before serving, dust the top of the cake with confectioners' sugar. You can serve slices of the cake with the peaches and cream on the side or dollop some whipped cream on top of the cake and top with the peaches before cutting.

Steps:

• Instructions for preparing tart filling: 1. To bake the tart, line the rack under the one you plan to use with a sheet of aluminum foil to catch any spills. 2. Heat the cream, sugar, & salt in a big, wide heavy-duty pot (use one that's at least 4 qts,) until it begins to boil. Continue to cook & when it starts to foam up, remove it from the heat & stir in the almonds, the extract, & liquor. 3. Scrape the filling into the shell. If there's a bit too much filling, don't toss it; in case the tart leaks, you can use it to add more. Make sure there's no clumps or piles of almonds & that everything is evenly distributed, then put the filled tart shell into oven. 4. After the first 10 min., check the tart. Take a heatproof rubber spatula, holding it diagonally & with a tapping motion, break up the surface of the tart. Doing this is important since it avoids the top of the tart getting that 'corn flaky' look. Be sure to give the filling a good series of 'taps'-not enough to break the tart shell pastry underneath, but it's important to break up the surface crust that's forming. 5. Continue to cook, checking the tart every 5-8 minutes, & break up any dry crust that may be forming, getting less aggressive as the filling sets up. As it begins to caramelize, stop tapping it & let the tart do its thing. 6. Remove the tart from the oven when the filling is the color of coffee with a light touch of cream in it & there are no large pockets of gooey white filling, about 30 min. Let the tart cool a few minutes on a cooling rack. 7. Check & see if the tart has fastened itself to the tart ring. Slide a knife between the tart & the pan to loosen it so the sides don't come off when you remove the ring. 8. To remove the ring rest the tart on top of a solid object & gently coax the ring off. Slip a large spatula underneath it to return the tart to a cooling rack.