GORDON RAMSAY RECIPES INGREDIENTS: apricots

Sometimes it makes my head spin how fast the seasons come and go. It’s already apricot season again, if you can believe it. I can’t complain, though, because they’re my favorite fruit for baking. They have a firm texture, just enough juiciness, and a great tart flavor. They work really well for bars like these because that flavor doesn’t get muffled by all those wonderful frangipane crumbles

Truth is, when I eat apricots I think of my mom. She died almost 21 years ago. Way too early for her, and way too early for me. An entire person could have grown up and blossomed in that gaping span of time. I know that because she died just after my youngest daughter was born, and she’s turning 21 next month.

I think of my mom because the last thing I made for her right before she died was a fresh
apricot tart. Her cancer had hit that critical point where it was so widespread there was nothing anyone could do for her. And because of all the medication and radiation treatments she had no appetite left for
anything. One of the things that bugged her the most was that nothing tasted good. Nothing appealed to her, and it seemed like all the pleasures of life were slowly draining from her body and spirit. But, as it turned out, she devoured my apricot tart, and it gave her one last unexpected burst of enjoyment. That’s the enduring detail, anyway, from those last few days that has stayed with me ever since.

I remember climbing a ladder in my sister’s back yard and plucking the best looking apricots from her tree. I sliced them up, baked them in a tart and offered it to the woman who fed me so well for so many years. I was the oldest of three daughters, and we didn’t always see eye to eye, but I was faithfully the first one to the dinner table every night. I was a good eater, and I appreciated her cooking. How lucky that I had the privilege of giving her the last delicious bite she had on this earth.

It just shows you the power that really good ingredients, cooked from scratch, can have. Of course working with a passion and a purpose doesn’t hurt. If your apricots are ripe and vaguely local, these crumble bars won’t disappoint you. Frangipane is a classic French filling made with ground almonds. The flavor and texture is one of the greats. It’s usually made with eggs, too, but I left them out because I’m going for a crisper shortbread texture in these bars. If you’re interested, this Chocolate Chip Frangipane with Bittersweet Ganache was an early recipe on my blog, and one of my favorites.

Apricot Frangipane Crumble Bars
oven to 350F
1 cup, 2 sticks, unsalted butter at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla paste or exract
1 tsp almond extract
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup almond flour, or almond meal (you can grind your own almonds in a processor)
about 6 or 7 apricots, thinly sliced
juice of 1/2 lemon
Crumble topping
(reserved 1 cup of the shortbread dough)
1/2 cup sliced almonds

Cream the butter and sugar together until nice and fluffy. Add in the extracts.
Whisk together the salt, flour and almond meal, and add it slowly to the butter and sugar until you get a crumbly dough. Reserve 1 cup of the mixture.
Line an 8×8 inch square baking dish with parchment paper, with edges overlapping the sides if you want to remove the squares from the pan for easier cutting. If not, lightly grease the pan. Pat the dough into the bottom with your hands, or use the back of a measuring cup to tamp down the dough. Don’t pack it down super hard, just get it spread out and relatively flat.
Arrange the apricot slices evenly over the top of the dough. Double up a little if you want.
Squeeze the lemon juice evenly over the apricots.
Make the crumble topping by mixing the sliced almonds with the reserved dough. Lightly mix with your fingertips, forming large crumbs. Scatter the crumbs evenly over the apricots.
Bake for about 40 minutes until lightly golden.
Cool slightly before cutting.

I’ve got a little series going of these fruit and nut crumble squares, and they’ve muscled out muffins and scones as my breakfast treat of choice. Check out my Lemon Macadamia or Blackberry Pecan.

Have a delicious Mother’s Day Weekend!

I have two big bags of apricots and peaches fresh from the farmer’s market this weekend. The only problem is, you don’t get the luxury of time with ripe fruit like this. You have to be on your toes, pick a plan of action and get right to it. He who hesitates is lost. I know because I’ve hesitated, and lost, many times before.

This panna cotta seemed like a good first plan, one, because I’ve never made it before and two, it only required sacrificing a few of my apricots. I stewed them in a little sugar, water, brandy, and vanilla and that alone turned out to be worth the price of admission. I even spooned a little of the hot apricots over a small mound of vanilla ice cream so I could report back to you. It was possibly the best topping for ice cream I’ve ever tasted and I seriously could have stopped right there.

Panna Cotta is Italian for baked cream. It’s related to custard, flan, crème brûlée, coeur de crème,
pot
de crème, and mousses, but it’s probably the simplest of all of them. There is no tricky cooking with eggs involved—the gelatin
thickens the cream and is practically foolproof.
It’s a good one to make for guests because practically everyone likes it. It’s cool silky light texture makes it a perfect hot weather dessert.

Sometimes you’ll see panna cotta served little jars or bowls, like I’ve
done, and other times you’ll see it turned out onto bowls or plates. It
can be plain, or made along with a sauce of some sort, either under it
or over it. Usually it’s served in fairly small sized portions, mine are a little on the large side. I could have portioned out 6 or even 8 smaller servings. I based my panna cotta on this recipe.

Vanilla Bean Panna Cotta with Brandied Apricots
makes 4 to 8 servings depending on size
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 vanilla bean
1/2 cup sugar
one 1/4 oz packet (2 1/2 tsp) powdered gelatin
for the brandied apricots:
5 apricots, pitted and sliced
1/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup brandy or Cognac
squeeze of lemon juice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Put the apricots, sugar, and water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer the apricots for about 3 minutes, just until they soften but haven’t broken down. Remove the apricots with a slotted spoon and layer them at the bottom of your serving dishes or jars.
Add the brandy and lemon juice and boil the sauce for another 10 minutes or so, until it is reduced to a thick syrup. Take it off the heat and stir in the vanilla. Pour the syrup evenly over the apricots, about a tablespoon or so over each jar, don’t drown the apricots.
Meanwhile make the panna cotta—Pour the milk and cream into a saucepan, and add the vanilla bean seeds and the bean itself. Bring it up to a simmer. Turn off the heat and let it steep for about 10 minutes.
Remove the vanilla bean pod, and add the sugar to the pan. Reheat the mixture and stir, just until the sugar is completely dissolved. Takeoff the heat.
Put 2 tablespoons of boiling water in a small glass and sprinkle the gelatin over it. Let it sit for a few minutes while the gelatin softens.
Stir the gelatin into the water until it is completely dissolved. Whisk it into the hot milk and cream mixture and blend it well.
Carefully pour the mixture into the serving jars, filling to the top. Try not to disturb the apricots too much.
Refrigerate until firm, about 4 hours.

My daughter Molly is home for exactly one and a half days, between spring semester in Dublin and flying off to a summer internship. We’ve got doctor appointments, laundry, and a lot of catching up to do. I think I’ll let her decide what we should do with the rest of those peaches and apricots.

One year ago today—

Chicken Pakora with Plum Chutney

Chef Gordon Ramsay Recipes

Tag: apricots

Apricot Frangipane Crumble Bars

Vanilla Bean Panna Cotta with Brandied Apricots