Apricot Gratin With Almonds And Kirsch Recipes

APRICOT GRATIN WITH ALMONDS AND KIRSCH

Steps:

• The day before, combine the sugar, honey, vanilla bean and water in a saucepan and bring to a boil.
• Place the whole apricots in a large saucepan. Pour the boiling syrup over them and bring back to a boil over medium-high heat. Remove from the heat; the apricots should be completely submerged in the syrup. If not, they will discolor. If necessary, invert a saucer over the top of the fruit to keep it submerged. Cover the saucepan and let stand for 24 hours. During this overnight marinating, the pits will impart an almond flavor to the apricots and their syrup.
• Drain the fruit, reserving the syrup and being careful not to crush the apricots. Halve the apricots. Remove and discard the pits. Place four or five apricot halves in the bottom of six gratin dishes that are four-inches in diameter, arranging the fruit just to cover the bottom of the dishes.
• Place the remaining apricots in a food processor or food mill with a little of the syrup and process to a thick puree. Set aside.
• To make the topping, combine one-half cup of the powdered sugar, the ground almonds, butter, egg yolks and whole egg in a mixing bowl and whisk until thoroughly blended.
• Divide the batter among the six gratin dishes, spreading it evenly over the top of the apricots. (If the batter is too thick, heat it slightly to soften.) Sprinkle the top of the batter with slivered almonds. Sprinkle the remaining one-fourth cup of powdered sugar over the top of the gratin dishes with a sugar sifter or fine sieve.
• Forty-five minutes before serving, preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Twenty minutes later, place the gratins in the oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly browned on top.
• Just before serving, place the apricot puree in a small saucepan and warm over low heat. Add the apricot brandy or kirsch and pour the sauce into a warm sauce boat.
• Serve the gratins on dessert plates lined with paper doilies or folded linen napkins. Pass the apricot topping separately.

APRICOT AND RASPBERRY GRANOLA GRATIN WITH RASPBERRY HONEY YOGURT

Steps:

• For the yogurt: In a small bowl, mix the yogurt and honey together. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• For the gratin: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Butter a 2-quart gratin dish with the softened butter.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk and eggs. Whisk in the flour, melted butter, brown sugar, cane sugar, vanilla and salt, until smooth. Pour the batter into the gratin dish and arrange the apricot slices and raspberries on top. Bake for 20 minutes.
• Take the gratin out of the oven, and sprinkle the top with the granola and almonds, and bake until the batter is light brown and set, and the fruit is tender, 5 to 10 more minutes. Let cool for 20 minutes before serving.
• Serve with a dollop of the raspberry honey yogurt.

MIXED GREENS WITH APRICOT VINAIGRETTE AND ALMONDS

Steps:

• Whisk together the vinegar and jam in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper. Slowly whisk in the olive oil until emulsified.
• Put the greens in a large bowl, toss with the vinaigrette and top with the almonds.

APRICOT ALMOND GALETTE

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Roll out pie crust onto a baking sheet.
• Toss the quartered apricots with the white sugar in a bowl. Mix almond meal, confectioners' sugar, and egg together in another bowl to create a paste. Spread almond paste on the center of the pie crust, leaving 1/2 inch of bare crust all around the edge. Arrange the sugared apricots over the almond paste. Fold the 1/2-inch bare edge of the crust inward over the almond paste and apricots, leaving the center of the tart uncovered. Crimp the edge down with a fork as you go around the tart.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the crust is golden brown, about 40 minutes. Brush the melted apricot jam over the hot galette. Slice and serve.

APRICOT-ALMOND GRATINS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F. Butter gratin dishes and put in a shallow baking pan.
• Soak apricots in brandy 10 minutes, then drain, reserving brandy.
• Reserve 2 tablespoons almonds. Pulse remaining almonds, granulated sugar, flour, and salt in a food processor until almonds are finely chopped. Add eggs and cream and pulse until smooth. Stir reserved brandy into almond cream.
• Pour almond cream into gratin dishes and sprinkle with apricots and reserved almonds.
• Bake gratins in middle of oven until puffed and golden brown, 18 to 20 minutes. Dust with confectioners sugar.

CRANBERRY-ALMOND-APRICOT BARK

Steps:

• Line a baking sheet with a sheet of waxed paper.
• Place chocolate in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. Stir frequently, scraping down the sides with a rubber spatula to avoid scorching, until chocolate is melted, about 5 minutes.
• Combine cranberries, almonds, and apricots in a bowl. Add to melted chocolate and mix until well combined.
• Spread chocolate onto the prepared baking sheet to a thickness of about 1/4 inch. Place baking sheet in the refrigerator until chocolate has completely hardened, about 1 hour. Break into pieces.