Plum Tart with Almond Crumble

I often cook out of a need to use ingredients that I think are at their prime and that was the case this past week. I had bought a box of plums from Costco and thought that time had arrived so I decided to make a simple tart that would let the fruit shine (why I think I will EVER finish an entire box before their day is done is beyond me!).

The fruit is lightly sweetened so retains a nice sweet-tart taste and the filling sits atop both the crust and a layer of sugar/nut/butter crumble that is also liberally sprinkled on top of the fruit filling; multi layers of goodness!

Yield: Makes 10 to 12 servings

Ingredients

Crust
1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 tablespoons chilled whipping cream
1 large egg yolk

Crumble
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 ground almonds
1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/4 cup sliced almonds

Filling
2 1/4 pounds plums (about 12), halved, pitted, sliced
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons cornstarch

Preparation

For crust:

Blend first four ingredients in processor until nuts are finely ground. Add butter; process until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add cream and yolk. Blend, using on/off turns, until dough comes together. Press over bottom and up sides of 11-inch-diameter tart pan with removable bottom. Pierce all over with fork. Chill at least 2 hours and up to 1 day.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Bake crust until golden, pressing with back of fork every 5 minutes if crust bubbles, about 25 minutes. Transfer crust to rack; cool. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F.

Crumble:

Use food processor to thoroughly grind almonds. Add sugar in processor and mix thoroughly. Add butter and blend, using on/off turns, until coarse crumbs form. Transfer crumble to bowl; mix in almonds.

Combine plums with sugar and cornstarch in medium bowl; toss to blend well.

Sprinkle 3/4 cup crumble over cooled crust. Top with plums. Sprinkle with remaining crumble.

Bake tart until filling bubbles thickly and top is golden, about 40 minutes. Cool 10 minutes. Push up pan bottom to release tart. Cool. (Can be made 8 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.)
 

Tagged as: almonds, plums, tart