Leylie’s Frangipane Tart

Serves 8

For the pastry, you will need:

• 300g plain flour, plus a little extra

for rolling out the pastry

• 150g cold unsalted butter, cubed • 50g icing sugar

• 2 egg yolks

• 1 tablespoon ice-cold water

For the frangipane, you’ll need:

• 200g unsalted butter

• 200g caster sugar

• 3 whole eggs, beaten

• Drop of natural almond essence • 200g ground almonds

• 50g plain flour

• 900g mixed summer berries

(ideally with some strawberries)

• ½ jar of apricot jam, warmed with

1 tablespoon water and sieved

1

First, make the pastry. To a large mixing bowl, add the plain flour and the cubes of butter, rubbing them together until you have a light crumble. Then sift in the icing sugar, mixing it gently. Make a well in the centre of the mixture, and add the egg yolks and the ice-cold water. Mix gently until a ball forms. Cover the pastry in cling film and refrigerate it for an hour.

2

To make the frangipane, use an electric whisk to cream the unsalted butter and the caster sugar together in a bowl until they are fluffy, then beat in a little of the beaten egg and the almond essence. Lower the whisk’s speed and add half the ground almonds and half the plain flour. Add the remaining beaten egg, followed by the remaining ground almonds and flour; keep mixing until everything is incorporated.

3

Remove the pastry from fridge and roll it out on a cool, floured surface. Line a lightly floured loose-bottomed fluted-edge 28cm-diameter tart tin with the pastry, and put it in the fridge to chill for another 30 minutes. Then take the tin from the fridge and fill it with the frangipane.

4

Put a heavy-based baking tray on the middle shelf of the oven. Preheat it to 185°C, 360°F, Gas 4.

5

Use 125g of the berries. Slice any strawberries, and arrange the berries on the frangipane. Press them down gently.

6

Place the tart on the hot baking tray in the preheated oven, and bake it for 40-50 minutes until it is golden and cooked through.

7

Once the tart is cooked and has cooled, brush the top with a little of the sieved apricot jam. Put the remaining strawberry halves around the edge of the tart. Arrange the remaining fruit in a circular manner until the top is covered. Glaze the fruit with the remaining apricot-jam glaze.

Leylie Hayes is executive chef at Avoca. For Avoca shops, order, delivery and collection information, see avoca.ie

In conversation with Sarah Caden