Petite Apricot Pastries Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°.
• For Apricots: Cook apricots in water till tender, then cool. Set aside. *Note: Apricots will soak up all of the 2 cups of water, there should be no water left. If apricots are still not tender when the water has been absorbed, add more water by the tablespoon full. Do not over water. *Note Apricots from a box may be tart, add small amount of sugar to sweeten. For best results use dried apricots found in the produce section usually in celophane bags.
• For Pastry Crust: Sift together flour, sugar and salt.
• Cut in shortening with pastry cutter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
• Scald milk and let it cool till it is just warm.
• Add yeast to milk and let soften.
• Add egg and vanilla to milk mixture.
• Add milk mixture to the flour mixture.
• Mix well.
• Divide dough into four parts.
• Form each part of dough into a square.
• On a surface well dusted with the powdered sugar/flour mixture, roll one part of the dough at a time to make 4 ten inch squares.
• Cut each square into sixteen 2½-inch squares.
• Forming the Pastries: Place heaping teaspoons of apricots in center of each individual square.
• Pinch two opposite corners together.
• Place two inches apart on greased cookie sheet.
• Let stand ten minutes. *Note: Most yeast recipes require the dough to be left to rise. This 10 minutes to stand after forming the pastry is the only rising this recipe requires.
• Bake at 350° for ten to twelve minutes.
• Remove at once from pan to cool on rack.
• Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pan). Spray bottom and sides of 15x10x1-inch pan with baking spray with flour.
• In large bowl, beat all cake ingredients except liqueur with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, then on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour batter into pan.
• Bake 22 to 28 minutes or until cake springs back when touched lightly in center. Brush liqueur over top of cake. Cool completely, about 20 minutes. To avoid cake crumbs when adding icing, freeze cake 1 hour before cutting.
• In large bowl, beat icing ingredients on low speed until powdered sugar is moistened. Beat on high speed until smooth. If necessary, add 2 to 3 teaspoons more apricot nectar until icing is pourable.
• Place cooling rack on cookie sheet or waxed paper to catch icing drips. Cut cake into 9 rows by 6 rows. Working with 6 pieces at a time, remove cake pieces from pan and place on cooling rack. Spoon icing evenly over top and sides of cake pieces, letting icing coat sides. (Icing that drips off can be reused.) Let stand until icing is set, about 2 hours.
• Decorate with almonds and orange peel as desired. Store in single layer in airtight plastic container.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°. In a large bowl, sprinkle apricots with lemon juice. Combine sugar, flour and nutmeg. Add to apricots, toss gently to coat., Line a 9-in. pie plate with bottom pastry; trim to 1 in. beyond edge of pie plate. Add filling. Roll out remaining pastry to make a lattice crust. Trim, seal and flute edges. Brush with milk and sprinkle with additional sugar. , Cover edges of pastry loosely with foil. Bake 45-55 minutes or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool on a wire rack.

Steps:

• First, make the marzipan. Mix both sugars with the ground almonds and vanilla in a large bowl. Make a well in the middle. Reserve 1 tsp of the beaten egg in a small dish, then tip the rest into the well along with the lemon juice. Mix everything well, then mix in the cream, 1 tbsp at a time, until the mixture is spreadable (you may not need all the cream). Chill for 20 mins if it's too warm to spread properly, or greasy. Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.
• Roll out the puff pastry on a baking tray lined with baking parchment, then score it lightly around the edges to create a 1.5cm border - be careful not to cut all the way through. Lightly score a diamond pattern over the middle to keep the pastry from rising in the centre during cooking.
• Spread the marzipan over the middle of the pastry, leaving the border clear (see tip, below). Top with the apricots, cut-side down. Brush the border with the reserved beaten egg, then bake for 15 mins. Scatter over the flaked almonds. Bake for 5-10 mins more until the almonds are golden and the pastry has cooked through.
• Warm the jam over a low heat, then brush it over the apricots. Cut into squares and serve warm with ice cream or cream. Will keep chilled for up to two days.