Dessert

Coconut and cherry frangipane tart

A sweet treat to make the most of cherry season.

Photo: Ben Dearnley

Ben Dearnley
10 - 12
20M
1H 15M
1H 35M

“For this recipe you will need to grate fresh coconut. You can do this yourself with the right tools or buy it grated from an Asian or Indian grocer,” says AP Bakery’s Dougal Muffet. Make sweet pastry first to allow for chilling and resting.

Ingredients

Sweet pastry

Method

1.For sweet pastry, beat butter and sugar in a large bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on high speed until light and fluffy, scraping down the bowl occasionally (5 minutes). Gradually pour in egg and beat until combined. Reduce speed to low, add flour and 1 tsp fine salt; mix until combined. Divide dough in half and form each half into a disc; wrap in plastic wrap and rest in refrigerator (30 minutes).
2.Meanwhile, for frangipane, beat butter, sugars, and vanilla seeds in a large clean bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on high speed until creamy and pale (3 minutes). Gradually pour in egg and beat until combined. Reduce speed to low, add coconut, star anise and flour; beat until just combined. Refrigerate until chilled and/or required.
3.Grease a 4cm-deep, 23cm-diameter fluted, loose-based tart tin. Roll out pastry on a lightly floured surface to 3mm thick, then line base and side of prepared tin; trim edge and refrigerate to rest (1 hour).
4.Preheat oven to 150ËšC fan-forced. Line tart shell with baking paper and blind bake until lightly browned (20-25 minutes). Remove paper and weights; bake until pastry is dry to touch (5 minutes). Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
5.Increase oven temperature to 170ËšC fan-forced. Spoon jam, then chilled frangipane mixture into tart shell and smooth over top. Bake tart until frangipane is lightly golden (45-50 minutes), covering with foil if browning too fast. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
6.To serve, top tart with cherries, dust with icing sugar and drizzle with honey.

Note: crack and drain coconuts, place, cut-side up on an oven tray in 200ËšC oven (20 minutes). Scoop flesh from shells, peel off brown skin and grate with a coconut grater or in a food processor. If fresh coconut is unavailable, substitute 300gm dried shredded coconut, soak in cold water for 4 hours. Drain and squeeze out excess moisture.

Notes

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